Breast cancer, and wine red or white, let yourself be guided by your taste, U.S. researchers advise

Women concerned about their health are likely to avoid the white wine to prefer red, which is ready antioxidant properties. However, none would bring benefits to the risk of breast cancer, according to U.S. researchers, who advise to choose according to their tastes, and not afraid of the disease.

Epidemiological studies have shown that the risk of breast cancer increased in women who drank alcohol, including wine, explain Polly Newcomb, of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, and colleagues in an article published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention.

"Two meta-analyzes have estimated an increase of approximately 10% risk of breast cancer by an additional 10 grams of alcohol per day (equivalent to a standard glass for each drink)," they specify .

However, results have shown the beneficial effects of red wine on heart disease and prostate cancer.

Considering that few studies have distinguished between two types of wine, the researchers measured the effect of alcohol consumption as a whole on the risk of breast cancer, but they are also interested in the impact of wine red and white.

To do this, they evaluated alcohol consumption (beer, red wine, white wine and liquor) of 6327 women aged 20-69 years who developed invasive breast cancer diagnosed between 1995 and 2000, focusing their analysis to the year prior to diagnosis.

These women were identified from the records of Wisconsin, Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Their responses were compared to those of 7558 women matched by age and selected from lists of license or beneficiaries of Medicare, the U.S. health insurance system.

Thus, the overall alcohol consumption was similar for both groups in the year before diagnosis. After multivariate adjustment, it was found that the absorption of 14 or more drinks per week worse by 24% the risk of breast cancer, compared to a person who does not drink. This increase persisted only in postmenopausal women.

However, separately, the wine was not associated with an increased risk of breast cancer. There was no difference between red wine and white. "If a woman drinks, she should do so in moderation-no more than one drink per day. And if a woman chooses red wine, she should do it because she likes the taste, not because she thinks that it can reduce the risk of breast cancer, "said Polly Newcomb in a statement.

However, researchers agree that different effects between red and white wines based on a "biological plausibility." Indeed, resveratrol, a polyphenol such content in grapes, has shown anticancer properties in vitro and is present in higher concentrations in red wine because fermentation methods.

However, this compound is rapidly metabolized. For example, two glasses of wine equivalent to about 27 mg / kg for a 70 kg adult, enough to cause detectable levels of derivatives, but not enough to allow the presence of molecules of free resveratrol. These concentrations are therefore not "bio-effective," the researchers suggest.

Moreover, they point out that alcohol consumption they studied only concern the year before diagnosis. Any changes in behavior over time were not taken into account.

"Wine consumption has increased during the last decade in the United States. Future studies should therefore more accurately assess the effect of red wine and white wine on the incidence of breast cancer," the researchers conclude.