Does the diet affect the risk of colon cancer?
A. The risk of colon cancer appears to be linked to diet, although the evidence for which types of food are involved is not very clear. Low fat, high fibre diets appear to carry a lower risk. Greater consumption of vegetables and fruit has also been shown to reduce the risk. Increased consumption of red meat and processed meat has been linked to a higher risk. By comparison, eating fish does not appear to be a risk factor. Some evidence suggests that certain dietary supplements, such as calcium, selenium and, possibly, folic acid can reduce the risk.
