Dietary patterns and breast cancer in Colombia: an ecological study

BACKGROUND: The role that diet plays in the development of breast cancer is unclear and breast cancer continues to increase in Colombia and worldwide. The objective of this study was to assess the association between patterns of dietary consumption and the incidence of breast cancer. METHODS: An ecological study was conducted in 24 geodemographic units in which 95% of the women of Colombia live. The association between breast cancer rate (dependent variable) and three dietary patterns established with factor analysis (traditional/starch, fiber/dairy and snack) was investigated using simple and multiple linear regression. The use of variables related to socioeconomic context and the duration of breastfeeding allowed for the control of possible confounding. All information was derived from concurrent national surveys or was obtained directly over a period of time close to the period during which the study was conducted. RESULTS: There is an inverse relationship between breast cancer rate and illiteracy rate (β=−2808.3), duration of breastfeeding (β=−3354.1), adherence to traditional/fiber dietary patterns (β=−30467) and adherence to the snack dietary pattern (β=−43612). The goodness of fit for the model was R(2)=84%. CONCLUSIONS: Increasing the duration of breastfeeding, ensuring education to promote health and following traditional food consumption patterns, regardless of what foods are consumed, can protect against the development of breast cancer.