e health resources » Cancer. seal oil

Several major epidemiologic studies have found a clear association between a high dietary fat intake and the risk of developing breast and colon cancer. The correlation is particularly strong in the case of animal fats. One study found that a high fish or fish oil consumption is protective against later stage colon cancer in men but has no effect on mortality from breast cancer. British medical researchers now report that fish and fish oils not only protect against colon cancer in men, but also against colon and breast cancer in women. This protective effect, however, is only apparent in countries where the intake of animal fats is high. In other words, a high intake of fish or fish oils counteracts the detrimental effects of a high animal fat consumption.

The study compared cancer mortality rates in 24 European countries, Canada and the USA with fish consumption and the intake of animal fats. In countries where the animal fat intake was high the researchers found a clear inverse correlation between the ratio of fish fat to animal fat and the risk of developing breast cancer in women and colon cancer in both men and women. A similar correlation was found between cancer risk and the ratio of fish fat to total fat intake.

The researchers conclude that a 15% decrease in animal fat intake combined with a 3-fold increase in fish oil intake could possibly reduce male colon cancer risk by as much as 30% in countries with a high animal fat intake. A 3-fold increase in fish oil intake could be achieved by eating fish three times a week or by taking two standard fish oil capsules daily.

Studies indicate the following:

Feeding omega 3 has slowed the growth of the tumour and made it less likely that the cancer would spread.

-Galli, Claudia, Butrum, Simopoulos et al, eds 1991, Karger, Basel, p462-476

A study of 12, 866 American men determined that those eating high amounts of omega 3 and low amounts of omega 6 had a 33% lower risk of dying from cancer.

-Dolecek, There and Grandits, World Review Nutr. Diet, Karger, 1991, 66: 205-216

Tissues taken from 100 skin cancer patients were compared with skin from 100 healthy individuals and it was found that the more omega 6 found in a person’s tissues, the more likely they were to have cancer.

- MacKie, MacKie and Bourne, Nutr and Cancer, 1987 9, 205-216

A comparison of cancerous brain tumours with healthy tissue revealed that omega 6 was 4x more prevalent in the cancerous tissues.

-Martin, Robbins and Hussy, Lipids, 1996, 31: 1238-1288

Incidence of breast cancer increased as Greenland and Icelandic women abandoned their traditional diets of marine life (mainly seal which is very high in omega 3)

- Bjarnason, Int. J., Cancer, 1974, 13: 689-696

In a 8 year study of 846 men, those given a diet high in omega 6 were twice as likely to die of cancer as those eating a diet low in omega 6.

- Pearce and Dayton, The Lancet, 1971, 464-467.

“For breast cancer, omega 6 fatty acids appear to have the greater cancer promoting effects and omega 3 fatty acids are the most protective.”

- C.L. Williams, M., Bollella, Laura Boccia and Arlene Spark, “Dietary Fat and Children” Nutrition today, vol 33, no 4: July/Aug 1998

In animal experiments, dietary corn oil very high in omega 6 has been shown to stimulate lung cancer of the adenocarcinoma type.

- Okuyama, Kobayashi and Watanabe. p.415

How does Omega 3 Reduce Cancer or The Risk Of Cancer?

Research indicates the following: Consuming more omega 3 makes the omega 6 linolenic acid that promote tumor growth less available. Omega 3 makes the cancer cells more vulnerable to free-radical attack by rendering the membranes less saturated. Omega 3 seems to promote the self-destruction of cancer cells thereby slowing tumor growth.

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