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BACKGROUND: Previous case-control studies have reported positive associations of spicy food consumption with risks of certain gastrointestinal-tract (GI) cancers. However, there is no prospective evidence on such associations, particularly from China, where there are high incidence rates of GI cancers and spicy food is widely consumed. METHODS: The prospective China Kadoorie Biobank study recruited >512 000 adults aged 30-79 years from 10 areas in China during 2004-2008; 2350 oesophageal, 3350 stomach and 3061 colorectal incident cancer cases were recorded by 1 January 2017, after a median of 10.1 years of follow-up. Cox regression yielded adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) for each cancer associated with spicy food intake. RESULTS: Overall, 30% of participants reported daily spicy food consumption at baseline. Spicy food consumption was inversely associated with oesophageal cancer risk, with adjusted HRs of 1.00, 0.88, 0.76, 0.84 and 0.81 for those who never/rarely consumed (reference) and consumed monthly, 1-2 days/week, 3-5 days/week and 6-7 days/week, respectively (ptrend 

Original publication

DOI

10.1093/ije/dyaa275

Type

Journal article

Journal

Int J Epidemiol

Publication Date

03/03/2021

Volume

50

Pages

199 - 211

Keywords

Spicy food, chilli peppers, digestive cancers, gastrointestinal cancers, prospective cohort studies, Adult, Biological Specimen Banks, China, Humans, Neoplasms, Prospective Studies, Risk Factors, Spices