“These findings suggest that peanut butter could help reduce the risk of breast cancer in women,” said Graham Colditz, MD, DrPH, senior author and associate director for cancer prevention and control at Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine.
Data was analysed from over 9,000 girls and young women who participated in the long-term research study, ‘Growing Up Today’.
The article explains that, ‘Vegetable fat consumed by pre-adolescent girls and vegetable protein consumed by adolescents may be protective, while peanut butter, high in both protein and fat, consumed at any age may be associated with lower risk for BBD’.
Peanuts contain more protein than any other nut, and peanut butter contains about 8g of protein per serving. In addition, peanut butter contains healthy oils and many nutrients such as phytosterols that have been shown to reduce the risk of major diseases, including cancer.
Previous research has shown that benign breast disease in young women is associated with increased risk of breast cancer and other adult diseases.
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