Dietary Biodiversity Linked to Reduced Gastric Cancer Risk

Research conducted in Lyon, France, suggests that eating a diverse diet, characterized by a wide variety of species, may contribute to reduced risk of gastrointestinal cancer. A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that individuals consuming more diverse diets had lower levels of certain amino acids and acylcarnitines in their blood, which are associated with a lower risk of cancer. The study analyzed the dietary patterns and blood metabolites of 7,983 cancer-free participants from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition cohort study.

Key Takeaways:

• The study found that higher dietary species richness was associated with lower levels of 4 amino acids, including tyrosine, and 2 acylcarnitines in the blood.
• The research concluded that the findings support the health benefits of consuming more diverse dietary species and may partially explain the inverse associations found in relation to mortality or gastrointestinal cancer.
• The study used metabolomic profiles from blood to identify key biomarkers of potential mechanisms underlying nutrition and health associations.
• A total of 52 metabolites were selected using Lasso regression in the replication set, of which 70% were statistically significant in stepwise linear regression.
• The study was carried out using data from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition cohort study, which included 7,983 cancer-free control participants.
• Bernadette Chimera and colleagues conducted the research and published their findings in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
• The study's findings may have implications for public health policies and recommendations on dietary diversity and cancer risk.

Statistics:

• 7,983 cancer-free control participants were included in the study.
• 52 metabolites were selected using Lasso regression in the replication set.
• 70% of the selected metabolites were statistically significant in stepwise linear regression.
• 4 amino acids were found to be associated with higher dietary species richness, including:

+ Tyrosine: -0.0231, 95% CI: -0.0362, -0.0100, p = 0.0009

+ Other amino acids: (no specific data provided)

• 2 acylcarnitines were found to be associated with higher dietary species richness, including:

+ C14:2: -0.0834, 95% CI: -0.1084, -0.0583, p = 0.0009

+ Other acylcarnitines: (no specific data provided)

Sources:

• NewsRx. Data on Gastric Cancer Reported by Bernadette Chimera and Colleagues (Metabolic profile of biodiverse diets in a healthy European cohort). Ecology, Environment & Conservation. June 27, 2025; p 96.
• American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Metabolic profile of biodiverse diets in a healthy European cohort. 2025.