Walnuts Slow Prostate Cancer

Yes, it appears to be true: walnuts slow the growth of prostate cancer, at least in mice. A UC Davis news release reports that researchers at the school had found, in a previous study, that walnuts reduced prostate tumor size in mice, but the researchers weren’t sure which parts of the nuts generated these benefits. This time around, the researchers used a mixture of fats with virtually the same fatty acid content as walnuts as their control diet. Mice were fed whole walnuts, walnut oil or the walnut-like fat for 18 weeks. The envelope please…the researchers found that while the walnuts and walnut oil reduced cholesterol and slowed prostate cancer growth, the walnut-like fat did not, confirming that other nut components caused the improvements – not the omega-3s. The researchers note that while the study doesn’t pinpoint which combination of compounds in walnuts slows cancer growth, it did rule out fiber, zinc, magnesium and selenium. What it did show is that walnuts modulate several mechanisms associated with cancer growth.