Day 034 - 11 Oct 94 - Page 24
1 of sentences. When the fat content of the diet is
2 increased, or when the diet contains more meat, in either
3 case one will find two effects. The average individual
4 consuming that diet will be heavier, although not
5 necessarily obese. Secondly, the proportion of
6 individuals who are obese will also rise.
7
8 So, you have put your finger on two factors. The
9 prevalence of obesity will increase with an increase in
10 fat or an increase in meat consumption, and the average
11 body size will increase as well, independent of the
12 prevalence of obesity.
13
14 MR. MORRIS: If we move on to Gregorio.
15
16 MS. STEEL: Before we do, if that is of any assistance that is
17 No. 22 of Dr. Barnard's references.
18
19 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Thank you.
20
21 MR. MORRIS: No. 45 of Dr. Barnard's references?
22 A. Yes.
23
24 Q. Is: "Dietary Fat Consumption and Survival Among Women
25 with Breast Cancer", Gregorio and Others. Would you like
26 to point us to the parts you find significant?
27 A. Yes. It is an interesting and important study, but
28 I would like briefly to draw attention to two things. The
29 first again is the date. This was published in the
30 Journal of the National Cancer Institute in 1985. I would
31 like to simply read the abstract and the first two or
32 three paragraphs because they provide an interesting
33 summary of what was already known and established at that
34 time and may shed some light on the nature of the
35 relationships between fat and breast cancer. First of
36 all, the abstract highlights the findings of the current
37 study. Then I will read the introduction which highlights
38 what was already known prior to this study beginning.
39
40 The abstract states: "An historical prospective study was
41 conducted to examine the relationship of dietary fat
42 intake to disease progression and length of survival of
43 953 women with breast cancer. Estimates of monthly fat
44 intake were based on patient responses about usual
45 frequency of consuming 33 foods and beverages prior to
46 symptom onset. Average estimated monthly fat intake did
47 not vary by stage of disease at diagnosis. When
48 controlling for disease stage and patient age at
49 diagnosis, the estimated risk of death at any time
50 increased 1.4 fold for each 1,000 g in monthly fat
51 intake."
52
53 If I may stop reading at that point and provide an
54 interpretation of that; that means a 40 per cent increased
55 risk at any future point in time per 1000 grammes of fat
56 in the diet consumed per month.
57
58 "Separate analysis by disease stage showed this
59 association to be most pronounced for subjects with
60 advanced disease. The need for future studies to
