CHICAGO, Feb. 8 (UPI) -- A low-fat diet high in fruit, vegetables and grains does not significantly cut post-menopausal women's risk of cancer and heart disease, U.S. researchers say.
In three articles in the Journal of the American Medical Association, researchers reported on the federally funded Women's Health Initiative Dietary Modification Trial of 48,835 women who were followed for more than eight years.
They concluded that -- despite eating a diet low in fat and high in vegetables, fruit and grains -- there was no significant reduction in the incidence of breast and colorectal cancer, cardiovascular disease or stroke in the post-menopausal women.
In the article focusing on breast cancer, researchers said "non-significant trends" suggest "that longer, planned, non-intervention follow-up may yield a more definitive comparison."
A separate article said such a diet "in mid- to late life cannot be expected to reduce the risk of colorectal cancer in this length of time."
As far as cardiovascular disease, "a greater magnitude of change in multiple macronutrients and micronutrients and other behaviors ... may be necessary," the authors wrote.
