Intake of Polyphenols from Cereal Foods and Colorectal Cancer Risk in the Melbourne Collaborative Cohort Study

Sep 24, 2026

Uploaded by McQueen

Cereal-derived polyphenols have shown protective mechanisms for colorectal cancer (CRC) in experimental models, but confirmation in human studies remained insufficient. This prospective Melbourne Collaborative Cohort Study assessed associations between intakes of cereal polyphenol subclasses and CRC risk. Dietary intake estimates were derived from matched food frequency questionnaire and polyphenol data, analyzed across intake quintiles using multivariable adjusted Cox proportional hazards models.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages15

Reading Time38 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Introduction

DOI: 10. 1002/cam4 .6514 RESEAR CH ARTICLE Intake of polyphenols from cereal foods and colorectal cancer risk in the Melbourne Collaborative Cohort Study Kristina Vingrys1,2 | Michael L. Mathai1 | Andrew J. McAinch1,3 | Julie K. Bassett4 | Maximilian de Courten1,5 | Lily Stojanovska1,6 | Lynne Millar1,7 | Graham G. Giles4,8,9 | Allison M. Hodge4,8 | Vasso Apostolopoulos1,3 1Institute for Health and Sport, Victoria University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia 2VU First Year College®, Victoria University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia 3Australian Institute for Musculoskeletal Science (AIMSS), Victoria University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia 4Cancer Epidemiology Division, Cancer Council Victoria, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia 5Mitchell Institute for Education and Health Policy, Victoria University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia 6Department of Nutrition and Health, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates 7Telethon Kids Institute, Nedlands, WA, Australia 8Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia 9Precision Medicine, School of Clinical Sciences at Monash Health, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia Correspondence Kristina Vingrys, Institute for Health and Sport/VU First Year College™, Victoria University, PO Box 14428, Melbourne, VIC 8001, Australia. [Email:](Email: kris.vingrys@vu.edu.au)[ kris.vingrys@vu.edu.au](Email: kris.vingrys@vu.edu.au) Funding information National Health and Medical Research Council, Grant/Award Number: 209057, 396414 and 1074383 Abstract Background: Cereal-derived polyphenols have demonstrated protective mechanisms in colorectal cancer (CRC) models; however, confirmation in human studies is lacking. Therefore, this study examined the association between cereal polyphenol intakes and CRC risk in the Melbourne Collaborative Cohort Study (MCCS), a prospective cohort study in Melbourne, Australia that recruited participants between 1990 and 1994 to investigate diet–disease relationships. Methods: Using food frequency questionnaire diet data matched to polyphenol data, dietary intakes of alkylresorcinols, phenolic acids, lignans, and total polyphenols from cereals were estimated. Hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals for CRC risk were estimated for quintiles of intake with the lowest quintile as the comparison category, using multivariable adjusted Cox proportional hazards models with age as the time axis adjusted for sex, socio-economic status, alcohol consumption, fibre intake, country of birth, total energy intake, physical activity and smoking status. Results: From 35,245 eligible adults, mean (SD) age 54.7 (8.6) years, mostly female (61%) and Australian-born (69%), there were 1394 incident cases of CRC (946 colon cancers and 448 rectal cancers) . Results for total cereal polyphenol Allison M. Hodge and Vasso Apostolopoulos are joint senior authors. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. © 2023 The Authors. Cancer Medicine published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. VINGRYS et al. | 19189 intake showed reduced HRs in Q2 (HR: 0.80; 95% CI, 0.68–0.95) and Q4 (HR: 0.75; 95% CI, 0.62–0.90), and similar for phenolic acids. Alkylresorcinol intake showed reduced HR in Q3 (HR: 0.80; 95% CI, 0.67–0.95) and Q4 (HR: 0.79; 95% CI, 0 .66–0.95) . Conclusions: Overall, the present study showed little evidence of association between intakes of cereal polyphenols and CRC risk. Future investigations maybe useful to understand associations between cereal-derived polyphenols and additional cancers in different populations. KEYWORDS cereals, colorectal cancer, food frequency questionnaire, Melbourne Collaborative Cohort Stu

FAQs

What is the study designed to test?

The study examines whether intakes of polyphenols from cereal foods are associated with colorectal cancer (CRC) risk in the Melbourne Collaborative Cohort Study.

How were dietary polyphenol intakes estimated?

Intakes were estimated using food frequency questionnaire diet data matched to polyphenol data, covering alkylresorcinols, phenolic acids, lignans, and total cereal polyphenols.

What statistical approach was used to evaluate CRC risk?

CRC risk by intake quintiles was analyzed using multivariable adjusted Cox proportional hazards models, with age as the time axis and adjustment for factors including sex, socio-economic status, alcohol, fibre, country of birth, total energy intake, physical activity, and smoking status.

What were the main findings regarding the association?

The overall results showed little evidence of an association between cereal polyphenol intakes and CRC risk, although some reduced hazard ratios were observed for certain quintiles and polyphenol subclasses.

Sep 24, 2026

Uploaded by McQueen