Are exercise and weight control more important than diet for preventing cancer and heart disease?
Dansinger: “I would agree that exercise, not smoking, and controlling your weight are more important than the type of diet. However, the type of diet is still likely to be very important in terms of long-term risk of disease. We lack proof, but there is ample evidence to support this belief.” Manson: “We wanted to modify the composition of the diet without restricting caloric intake. The diet trial was not intended to address exercise or weight loss. If substantial weight loss had occurred, which it did not, that in itself might explain changes in risk factor status, which would confound the trial’s results.” Q: Did the study find any link between a low-fat diet and breast cancer? Manson said yes, explaining: “There was a suggestion that at least the women who started out with a high-fat diet more than 37 percent fat may benefit from lowering” the total amount of fat they consume. “It’s clear this dietary pattern doesn’t reduce heart disease and stroke that’s the reason it should not b
