The following highlights recently released journal articles on women's health issues.

Breast Cancer

• "Meat Consumption and Risk of Breast Cancer in the UK Women's Cohort Study," British Journal of Cancer: Janet Cade, a professor at the University of Leeds' Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics, and colleagues monitored the eating habits and health of about 35,372 women ages 35 to 69 participating in the UK Women's Cohort Study between 1995 and 1998 to determine associations between breast cancer and a woman's consumption of meat (Taylor et al., British Journal of Cancer, April 2007). The study found that post-menopausal women who ate more than 57 grams of red meat daily had a 56% higher incidence of breast cancer, compared with women who ate no meat. According to the study, post-menopausal women who ate 20 grams of processed meat -- including bacon, sausages or ham -- daily had a 64% higher incidence, compared with women who did not eat meat. Post-menopausal women who ate less than 10 grams of processed meat daily had a 48% increased risk of breast cancer, the study found. The study also found a higher risk of breast cancer among pre-menopausal women who ate meat, but the difference was not statistically significant. Cade said, "There are several mechanisms whereby meat intake may contribute to breast cancer risk." She added, "Meat, in particular, processed meats, can be a rich source of saturated fat." According to the researchers, the link also could be due to the way the meat is preserved or cooked (Moss, Scotsman, 4/4).

Pregnancy & Childbirth

• "Vitamins and Perinatal Outcomes Among HIV-Negative Women in Tanzania," New England Journal of Medicine: Wafaie Fawzi of Harvard University's School of Public Health and colleagues enrolled 8,468 HIV-negative pregnant women in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, who were receiving iron and folic acid supplements to determine the effect multivitamins had on perinatal outcomes. Half of the women received placebos and the other half supplements containing B, C and E vitamins. The study found that the infants born to women who took the vitamins had a 7.8% risk of being born at low weight, compared with a 9.4% risk for infants born to women who took placebos. Both groups had a fetal death rate of about 5% and a premature delivery rate of 17%. According to Reuters, Fawzi and his team previously have found that vitamin supplements helped save infants born to HIV-positive women. "In light of these findings, we recommend that multivitamins be considered for all pregnant women in developing countries," Fawzi in a statement said. The researchers said that adding the vitamins to iron and folate supplements produced by UNICEF would increase the cost by 20 cents per person, adding, that "scaling up prenatal multiple micronutrient supplementation could be a highly cost-effective approach to improving both outcomes among pregnant women in developing countries" (Emery, Reuters, 4/4).
  
  
• Weight Gain During Pregnancy, American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology: Emily Oken, a professor of ambulatory care and prevention at Harvard Medical School, and colleagues analyzed 1,044 pairs of mothers and their three-year-old children and compared how much weight the mother had gained during pregnancy and the body mass index of their children, the AP/Kansas City Star reports (Ritter, AP/Kansas City Star, 4/2). The women were divided into three groups based on whether their pregnancy weight gain was below, within or above the guidelines set by the Institute of Medicine, Reuters Health reports. According to the guidelines, women with a low BMI should gain about 27 to 39 pounds during pregnancy, women with a normal BMI should gain about 25 to 35 pounds, women with an overweight BMI should gain about 15 to 25 pounds and women with an obese BMI should gain at least 13 pounds. The study found that excessive weight gain was reported in 51% of the women, adequate weight gain in 35% and inadequate weight gain in 14%. Women with excessive or adequate weight gain were about four times more likely than women with inadequate weight gain to have a child who was overweight by age three, the study found (Reuters Health, 4/3). Oken said it is not clear why greater weight gain in women would increase the risk that their children would be overweight (AP/Kansas City Star, 4/2). "Because childhood obesity is increasing in prevalence and effective treatment remains elusive, preventing childhood obesity remains critical," Oken said, adding that IOM might "need to re-evaluate its recommendations for weight gain in (pregnancy), considering not only birth outcomes but also risk of obesity for both mother and child" (Reuters Health, 4/3). She added that pregnant women might aim for the lower end of their recommended weight gain (AP/Kansas City Star, 4/2).