The incidence of prostate cancer is much lower in Asian than in Western populations. Lifestyle and dietary habits may play a major role in the etiology of this cancer. Given the possibility that risk ...factors for prostate cancer differ by disease aggressiveness, and the fact that 5-year relative survival rate of localized prostate cancer is 100%, identifying preventive factors against advanced prostate cancer is an important goal.
Using data from the Japan Public Health Center-based Prospective Study, the author elucidates various lifestyle risk factors for prostate cancer among Japanese men. The results show that abstinence from alcohol and tobacco might be important factors in the prevention of advanced prostate cancer. Moreover, the isoflavones and green tea intake in the typical Japanese diet may decrease the risk of localized and advanced prostate cancers, respectively.
Longitudinal epidemiological studies require both the periodic update of intake information via repeated dietary survey and the minimization of subject burden in responding to questionnaires. We ...developed a 66-item Food Frequency Questionnaire (short-FFQ) for the Japan Public Health Center-based prospective Study for the Next Generation (JPHC-NEXT) follow-up survey using major foods from the FFQ developed for the original JPHC Study. For the JPHC-NEXT baseline survey, we used a larger 172-item FFQ (long-FFQ), which was also derived from the JPHC-FFQ. We compared the validity of ranking individuals by levels of dietary consumption by these FFQs among residents of selected JPHC-NEXT study areas.
From 2012 to 2013, 240 men and women aged 40-74 years from five areas in the JPHC-NEXT protocol were asked to respond to the long-FFQ and provide 12-day weighed food records (WFR) as reference; 228 also completed the short-FFQ. Spearman's correlation coefficients (CCs) between estimates from the FFQs and WFR were calculated and corrected for intra-individual variation of the WFR.
Median CC values for energy and 53 nutrients for the short-FFQ for men and women were 0.46 and 0.44, respectively. Respective values for the long-FFQ were 0.50 and 0.43. Compared with the long-FFQ, cross-classification into exact plus adjacent quintiles with the short-FFQ ranged from 68% to 91% in men and 58% to 85% in women.
Similar to the long-FFQ, the short-FFQ provided reasonably valid measures for ranking middle-aged and elderly Japanese for many nutrients and food groups. The short-FFQ can be used in follow-up surveys in prospective cohort studies aimed at updating diet rank information.
Purpose
The present study aimed to examine the association between adherence to the Japanese diet and the subsequent risk of all-cause and cause-specific mortality using a large-scale cohort from ...settings all over Japan.
Methods
We analyzed data from a cohort study of 92,969 Japanese adults aged 45–74 years, covering 11 public health center areas nationwide. We collected dietary information using a validated 147-item food frequency questionnaire. Adherence to the Japanese diet consisting of eight components (high intake of rice, miso soup, seaweeds, pickles, green and yellow vegetables, fish, and green tea; low intake of beef and pork) was assessed using 8-item Japanese Diet Index (JDI8) score, with scores ranging from 0 to 8. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to estimate the hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for all-cause and cause-specific mortality.
Results
During a median follow-up of 18.9 years, we documented 20,596 deaths. A higher JDI8 score was significantly associated with a lower risk for all-cause and cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality. The multivariable-adjusted HR of all-cause and CVD mortality for the highest JDI8 score group (score of 6–8) versus the lowest JDI8 score group (score of 0–2) were 0.86 (95% CI 0.81–0.90,
P
trend < 0.001), and 0.89 (95% CI 0.80–0.99,
P
trend = 0.007), respectively.
Conclusions
Adhering to the Japanese diet, as assessed by the JDI8, was associated with a decreased risk of all-cause and CVD mortality among adults living in multiple areas across Japan.
Obesity is a risk factor for a wide variety of health problems. In a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of body mass index (BMI) in Japanese people (n = 173,430), we found 85 loci significantly ...associated with obesity (P < 5.0 × 10
), of which 51 were previously unknown. We conducted trans-ancestral meta-analyses by integrating these results with the results from a GWAS of Europeans and identified 61 additional new loci. In total, this study identifies 112 novel loci, doubling the number of previously known BMI-associated loci. By annotating associated variants with cell-type-specific regulatory marks, we found enrichment of variants in CD19
cells. We also found significant genetic correlations between BMI and lymphocyte count (P = 6.46 × 10
, r
= 0.18) and between BMI and multiple complex diseases. These findings provide genetic evidence that lymphocytes are relevant to body weight regulation and offer insights into the pathogenesis of obesity.
Changing trends in the prevalence of H. pylori infection in the general population over time are thought to be the main driving force behind the declining gastric cancer mortality in Japan. However, ...whether the prevalence of H. pylori infection itself shows a birth-cohort pattern needs to be corroborated. We performed a systematic review of studies that reported the prevalence of H. pylori infection among Japanese individuals. Meta-regression was conducted in the framework of a generalized additive mixed model (GAMM) to account for heterogeneity in the prevalence of H. pylori infection as a function of birth year. The prevalence of H. pylori infection confirmed a clear birth cohort pattern: the predicted prevalence (%, 95% CI) was 60.9 (56.3-65.4), 65.9 (63.9-67.9), 67.4 (66.0-68.7), 64.1 (63.1-65.1), 59.1 (58.2-60.0), 49.1 (49.0-49.2), 34.9 (34.0-35.8), 24.6 (23.5-25.8), 15.6 (14.0-17.3), and 6.6 (4.8-8.9) among those who were born in the year 1910, 1920, 1930, 1940, 1950, 1960, 1970, 1980, 1990, and 2000, respectively. The present study demonstrated a clear birth-cohort pattern of H. pylori infection in the Japanese population. The decreased prevalence of H. pylori infection in successive generations should be weighed in future gastric cancer control programs.
Aim: A positive association between non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (non-HDL-C) and coronary heart disease (CHD) has been established; however, associations between non-HDL-C and stroke ...subtypes have not been determined. Methods: We conducted a prospective study of 30,554 individuals aged 40–69 yrs with no history of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in Japan. Sex-specific hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the incidence of stroke subtypes and CHD were estimated according to quintiles of non-HDL-C, using Cox proportional hazard models adjusted for other established risk factors. Results: We identified 1,705 stroke and 296 CHD events over a median 15 yrs of follow-up. The fractional polynomials analysis revealed a U-shaped association between non-HDL-C and stroke risk in men. When analyzed for stroke subtypes, the data revealed an inverse relationship between non-HDL-C and intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), primarily with lobar ICH, and a positive association between non-HDL-C and large-artery occlusive infarction in men adjusted HR 0.55 (95% CI, 0.35–0.87) and 2.05 (95% CI, 1.07–3.93) for the highest and lowest quintile of non-HDL-C, respectively. The lowest risk of ICH in women was observed in the fourth quintile, and the lowest risk of embolic infarction was observed in the third quintile. In contrast, non-HDL-C was positively associated with CHD in both sexes. Conclusions: In Japanese men, lower non-HDL-C levels were associated with a decreased risk of large-artery occlusive infarction and an increased risk of ICH, particularly lobar ICH.
Objective To examine the association between adherence to the Japanese Food Guide Spinning Top and total and cause specific mortality.Design Large scale population based prospective cohort study in ...Japan with follow-up for a median of 15 years.Setting 11 public health centre areas across Japan.Participants 36 624 men and 42 970 women aged 45-75 who had no history of cancer, stroke, ischaemic heart disease, or chronic liver disease.Main outcome measures Deaths and causes of death identified with the residential registry and death certificates.Results Higher scores on the food guide (better adherence) were associated with lower total mortality; the multivariable adjusted hazard ratios (95% confidence interval) of total mortality for the lowest through highest scores were 1.00, 0.92 (0.87 to 0.97), 0.88 (0.83 to 0.93), and 0.85 (0.79 to 0.91) (P<0.001 for trend) and the multivariable adjusted hazard ratio associated with a 10 point increase in food guide scores was 0.93 (0.91 to 0.95; P<0.001 for trend). This score was inversely associated with mortality from cardiovascular disease (hazard ratio associated with a 10 point increase 0.93, 0.89 to 0.98; P=0.005 for trend) and particularly from cerebrovascular disease (0.89, 0.82 to 0.95; P=0.002 for trend). There was some evidence, though not significant, of an inverse association for cancer mortality (0.96, 0.93 to 1.00; P=0.053 for trend).Conclusion Closer adherence to Japanese dietary guidelines was associated with a lower risk of total mortality and mortality from cardiovascular disease, particularly from cerebrovascular disease, in Japanese adults.
Epidemiological evidence on the effects of a long‐term low‐carbohydrate diet (LCD) on cancer incidence remains sparse. We investigate the association between LCD and the risk of overall and specific ...cancer site incidence in a Japanese population‐based prospective cohort study among 90 171 participants aged 45‐74. Cox proportional hazards models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). During a median 17.0 y of follow‐up, we identified 15 203 cancer cases. A higher overall LCD score was associated with increased overall cancer risk (HR = 1.08 CI: 1.02‐1.14, P‐trend = .012), while it was associated with decreased gastric cancer (GC) risk (0.81 0.71‐0.93, P‐trend = .006). A higher animal‐based LCD score was associated with higher risk of overall cancer (1.08 1.02‐1.14, P‐trend = .003), colorectal cancer (CRC) (1.11 0.98‐1.25, P‐trend = .018), rectal cancer (RC) (1.24 1.00‐1.54, P‐trend = .025), lung cancer (LC) (1.16 1.00‐1.34, P‐trend = .042), and lower risk of GC (0.90 0.79‐1.01, P‐trend = .033). Furthermore, we found that plant‐based LCD score was related to lower GC incidence (0.87 0.77‐0.99, P‐trend = .031). Additionally, adjusted for plant fat intake amplified the adverse associations (overall cancer: 1.08 1.02‐1.14 vs. 1.11 1.05‐1.18; CRC: 1.08 0.95‐1.22 vs. 1.13 0.99‐1.30; LC: 1.14 0.98‐1.33 vs. 1.19 1.01‐1.41). We conclude that LCD enriching with animal products was associated with increased overall cancer, CRC, and LC incidence. These adverse associations could be attenuated by plant fat consumption. LCD reduces the risk of developing GC. Long‐term adherence to LCD without paying attention to the balance between animal and plant food source consumption might cause adverse overall cancer incidence consequences.
Epidemiological evidence on the effects of a long‐term low‐carbohydrate diet (LCD) on cancer incidence remains sparse. In this cohort study, the authors found that a higher animal‐based LCD score was associated with a higher risk of overall cancer, colorectal cancer, lung cancer, and a lower risk of gastric cancer (GC). A plant‐based LCD score was associated with decreased GC incidence.
Background: The place of death and related factor, such as diseases, symptoms, family burden, and cost, has been examined, but social background and lifestyle were not considered in most studies. ...Here, we assessed factors that are associated with the place of death using the largest cohort study in Japan.Methods: A total of 17,781 deaths from the cohort study were assessed. The study database was created from the Japan Public Health Center-based Prospective Study (JPHC Study), in which demographic data were collected from Japanese Vital Statistics. Adjusted odds ratios for home death were calculated using logistic regression.Results: Multivariate analysis adjusted for various factors showed that unmarried status (odds ratio OR 2.4; 95% confidence interval CI, 2.0–2.9), unemployed male (OR 1.3; 95% CI, 1.1–1.5), and high drinking level in male (OR 1.3; 95% CI, 1.1–1.6) were associated with home death. Regarding the cause of death, cardiovascular disease (OR 3.3; 95% CI, 2.9–3.8), cerebrovascular disease (OR 1.9; 95% CI, 1.6–2.2), and external factors (OR 4.1; 95% CI, 3.5–4.8) were significantly associated with home death, compared with cancer. The risk of death at home was significantly higher among unmarried subjects stratified by cause of death (cardiovascular disease: OR 3.2; 95% CI, 2.2–4.7; cerebrovascular disease: OR :5.1; 95% CI, 2.9–9.1; respiratory disease: OR 3.4; 95% CI, 1.6–7.6; and external factors: OR 2.3; 95% CI, 1.4–3.7), but for cancer, the risk of death at home tended to be higher among married participants.Conclusion: This study found that various factors are associated with home death using the largest cohort study in Japan. There is a high possibility of home deaths in people with fewer social connections and in those with diseases leading to sudden death.