In a study published in the American Journal of Nutrition, researchers report on an analysis of data from 52 700 men and women that showed that those who ate a predominantly vegetarian diet had fewer cancers than those who ate meat.
However, a surprising finding was that vegetarians had a higher rate of colorectal cancer - usually linked with eating red meat - among the vegetarians than among the meat-eaters.
The men and women in the study were aged between 20 to 89 and were recruited in the UK in the 1990s. Participants were divided into meat-eaters, fish-eaters, vegetarians and vegans. Overall, the group had a lower than average incidence of cancer, but those who were vegetarian or fish-eaters had the lowest incidence.
Researchers say that further studies are required to elucidate the link between diet and cancer.
