Processed meat and fish have been shown to be associated with the risk of developing advanced prostate cancer. There are only two studies that have looked at the kinds of foods that cause prostate cancer to grow and spread once the diagnosis of prostate cancer has already been made.

A new ten year study of almost 84,000 men in Hawaii and California found that men who put on extra weight after age 21 have significantly greater odds of prostate cancer. This is especially true for white males. Those who gained 10 pounds were twice as likely to develop advanced or aggressive prostate cancer than their slim peers. However, in black men the risk didn't increase until the weight gain topped 25 pounds, but only for less aggressive tumors. These racial differences may be due to the different ways people store their excess fat.

PositiveTip: This study did not look at the benefit of weight loss on risk for prostate cancer, there are many good reasons to keep off the unnecessary pounds.

Early results from the GEMINAL study may hold exciting potential for those with prostate cancer. This pilot study demonstrated that intensive lifestyle and nutrition changes positively modulated gene expression in patients who already had prostate cancer. Significant changes to biological processes were observed in systems that play a role in how tumors grow. Those patients who made the most changes experienced significantly slower tumor growth!

PoistiveTip: A low fat diet,with lots of fruits and vegetables, legumes and soy products combined with physical activity and stress management may be the future treatment for prostate cancer!