Olive oil fights breast cancer

Olive oil might be the reason for the low breast cancer rate in Mediterranean nations.

Olive oil is high in oleic acid.

'In laboratory experiments using breast-cancer cells, a US team has shown that oleic acid cuts the levels of the breast cancer-promoting gene Her-2/ neu by up to 46 per cent. High levels of this gene are found in a fifth of all breast cancers and are particularly active in cancers that are resistant to treatment, ' says  The Times, London, quoting a report in the Annals of Oncology.

'High levels of this gene are found in a fifth of all breast cancers and are particularly active in cancers

that are resistant to treatment. Some breast-cancer drugs, such as Herceptin, work by targeting this gene. But women who consume a lot of olive oil enjoy Herceptin-like benefits.'

"Our findings underpin epidemiological studies that show that the Mediterranean diet has significant protective effects against cancer, heart disease and ageing," Javier Menendez of the Northwestern University Fein- berg School of Medicine in Chicago, who led the research, was quoted as saying.

According to The Times, studies indicate that as many as 15 per cent of breast cancer cases in Britain might be avoided by shifting to a Mediterranean diet.