Milk reduces colorectal cancer

Drinking at least one glass of milk per day lowers the risk of colorectal cancer, a new meta-analysis has confirmed.

Milk and other calcium sources have long been thought to play a role in preventing colorectal cancer, the nation's second-leading cancer killer. Studies have shown that high calcium intake reduces the occurrence of polyps that can turn cancerous. But diet-tracking studies always stopped short of finding final proof of a truly lowered cancer risk.

This time, researchers pooled 10 of the world's largest studies on the long-believed link, tracking nutrient consumption of more than 500,000 people.

People who drank 6-8 ounces of milk per day had a 12 percent lower risk of developing colorectal cancer than those who drank less than two glasses of milk per week. People who drank more than one glass per day saw a risk reduction of 15 percent.

Other dairy products, however, don't appear to have the same effect. Vitamin D, which is added to milk, may be a factor in addition to milk's calcium content.

The study was published in the July 2004 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

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