Reports: Quantity and Variety of Fruit and Vegetable Consumption and Cancer Risk

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Abstract
The recommendation for fruit and vegetable intake includes eating a certain quantity as well as a variety. The evidence for eating a variety is limited. We examined the association with cancer in a prospective cohort study among 730 Dutch men aged 65-84 yr followed for 10 years, resulting in 138 cancer cases. The quantity of fruits and vegetables was assessed using a dietary history and the variety in intake was based on a food frequency questionnaire. Adherence to the recommended amounts of fruit and vegetables was inversely associated with total cancer risk: The adjusted relative risk (RR) was 0.56 [95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.31-1.00]. Eating the recommended daily 200 g of vegetables was not related to cancer incidence, whereas eating the recommended 200 g of fruit was associated with a 38% lower risk. Variety in vegetable intake was inversely associated with total cancer and non-lung epithelial cancer: The RRs (95% CI) for the highest and lowest tertiles were 0.64 (0.43-0.95) and 0.51 (0.27-0.97)...