Michael Darling

Coffee doesn't just kick-start the morning. New research shows that a cup of black coffee may also wake up the immune system, fortifying the body’s natural cancer-fighting agents.

Take, for example, a new study by researchers affiliated with Harvard University, which found that a spike in caffeine consumption correlated with a lower risk of basal cell carcinoma, a form of skin cancer that affects nearly 2.2 million Americans and is responsible for roughly 80 percent of all nonmelanoma cancer instances nationwide, according to the American Cancer Society.

In the study, the benefits of drinking coffee, surprisingly, broke down starkly along gender lines: The risk for women who drank more than three cups of caffeinated coffee every day was 21 percent lower than women who had less than one cup a month, whereas men showed only a 10 percent lower risk. Researchers don’t currently have a reason to account for that divide. Both groups were compared with people who drank coffee less than once a month. And there’s even good news for those who count themselves among the abstainers: The same effects were shown in chocolate, cola and tea.

“With this particular form of cancer, our research shows that it’s the caffeine in the coffee that’s probably responsible for the risk reduction,” says Jiali Han, an epidemiologist and an associate professor at Harvard Medical School. “We think that’s because caffeine plays a role in the process of apoptosis—cell death, essentially&mdash;so there is a biological rationale.”

That may also explain a recent study published in the 

 that spanned two decades. It found that men who drank six or more cups of coffee daily had an 18 percent lower risk of developing prostate cancer than men who drank no coffee at all. And these men were 60 percent less likely to develop metastatic prostate cancer. Cut the intake down to one to three cups, and men still managed to lower their lethal prostate cancer risk by 29 percent.

And there’s more: A 2007 Swedish study, for instance, found that an increase of two cups of coffee daily was associated with a lower risk of liver cancer by 43 percent. Studies like these add to a growing body of research that has already shown coffee drinkers may live longer, on average, and show a lower risk of Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, gout, type 2 diabetes and Parkinson’s. But don’t take that as a cue to become mayor of the Starbucks drive-thru.

We think that’s because caffeine plays a role in the process of apoptosis—cell death, essentially&mdash;so there is a biological rationale."

“None of the studies that report decreased risk in coffee drinkers actually show that drinking coffee was the reason,” says James Lane, professor of medical psychology and director of the Psychophysiology Laboratory at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C. “The studies never establish a cause-effect for the association.” And that limitation is more important than some people might think.

“Coffee is often said to contain antioxidants that could fight cancer, but there is no scientific evidence that these compounds influence oxidative stress in humans,” Lane says. “Experimental studies must be conducted to determine the effectiveness of a new treatment, and many times those studies fail to find a beneficial effect.”

On the other hand, for people who count on java first thing—and maybe second and third thing&mdash;in the morning, it’s not necessarily a habit they need to worry about breaking, either. “The literature on coffee and cancer, as well as that on coffee and cardiovascular disease and diabetes, suggests that it’s not harmful in terms of long-term health,” says Kathryn Wilson, a research associate at Harvard School of Public Health who led a recent study linking coffee to a reduced risk of prostate cancer. “So if people like drinking three or more cups per day, there’s no reason to stop.” Unless, of course, they have insomnia.

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The best part of waking up could be the antioxidants in your cup.

Coffee's Hidden Cancer Fighters

Doctors say you should eat more fruits and vegetables. But if they were being more specific, they might tell you one day to eat more lignans. Found in things as diverse as flaxseeds and Chianti, lignans are a form of plant compound called phytoestrogens that have recently been shown to contain potential cancer-fighting properties. They may also be related to better survival after postmenopausal breast cancer, according to a 2011 study in the 

Previous studies examined the health benefits of phytoestrogens, but most of those studies focused on soy-based foods, also known as isoflavones. About 20 years ago, the focus shifted from soy-based isoflavones toward plant-based lignans. Part of the reason had to do with facing dietary realities: In North America, the average family consumes far more lignan-rich foods, such as wheat, flaxseed and peas, than soy-based foods, such as tofu. 

In one of the most recent studies, researchers tracked levels of enterolactone—a byproduct of lignans&mdash;among postmenopausal breast cancer patients. Among other things, they found that women who reported the highest levels of enterolactone had higher odds of cancer survival&mdash;as much as 40 percent.  

How did that happen? Lignans, one theory posits, share some structural similarities with estrogens, which are associated with a higher risk of breast cancer. Basically, they’re about the same shape. That means lignans might have the ability to bind to estrogen receptors—blocking stronger forms of estrogens from doing so, and thus preventing the growth of cancer cells.  

Research is still ongoing as to whether lignans can benefit more than just breast cancer patients, but there is reason for optimism. “In animal studies, lignans have also been shown to exert other mechanisms associated with reduced risk of tumor growth, such as inhibition of metastasis,” says Ruth Patterson, PhD, professor of family and preventive medicine at the University of California, San Diego’s Moores Cancer Center in La Jolla, Calif. 

Better yet, since lignans are found in the walls of plant cells, they tend to be plentiful, cheap and fairly easy to incorporate into a diet plan. Flaxseed contains the highest concentration of lignans, nearly three times as much as sesame seeds, the next leading food source. You can also find lower, but still significant, doses of lignans in Chianti, cabernet, rice, peas and whole grains. 

Researchers, however, are still reluctant to recommend a sudden increase in the consumption of flaxseed and other lignan-rich foods—and for good reason. Many are reminded of a study in the 1980s that suggested fruits and vegetables high in beta carotene lowered the risk of lung cancer. In trials, however, beta carotene was actually found to increase the incidence of tumors. 

“The investigators are not sure why this happened, but it could well be because beta carotene was given as a supplement and in amounts higher than typically obtained in even a healthy diet,” says Susan McCann, PhD, associate professor of oncology at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo, N.Y., and author of a study on lignans and breast cancer. “It’s quite likely that beta carotene in isolation works differently from beta carotene in a vegetable in combination with other food compounds.”

While researchers are encouraged by the initial findings, they’re quick to point out that not every study linking lignans and breast cancer reached the same conclusions. “Some studies find a protective effect, whereas some find no associations at all,” McCann says. “Others have more consistently shown either no association, or in a couple, an actual increase in cancer risk.”

Clinical trials, which may get under way soon, could help researchers determine whether the connection between lignans and cancer prevention is sound and risk-free. Only then will we know for certain if one of the healthiest moves we can make all day is as simple as which bagel to choose for breakfast—or, better yet, which wine to pour for dinner. 

Better yet, since lignans are found in the walls of plant cells, they tend to be plentiful, cheap and fairly easy to incorporate into a diet plan.

Why you may need to eat (and drink) more lignans. 

Michael Darling

Coffee's Hidden Cancer Fighters

The Latest on Lignans for Cancer

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