Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2008 Jul 1;168(1):38-48.
doi: 10.1093/aje/kwn097. Epub 2008 Jun 4.

Index-based dietary patterns and risk of colorectal cancer: the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study

J Reedy  1 , P N Mitrou, S M Krebs-Smith, E Wirfält, A Flood, V Kipnis, M Leitzmann, T Mouw, A Hollenbeck, A Schatzkin, A F Subar
Affiliations

Index-based dietary patterns and risk of colorectal cancer: the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study

J Reedy et al. Am J Epidemiol. .

Abstract

The authors compared how four indexes-the Healthy Eating Index-2005, Alternate Healthy Eating Index, Mediterranean Diet Score, and Recommended Food Score-are associated with colorectal cancer in the National Institutes of Health-AARP Diet and Health Study (n = 492,382). To calculate each score, they merged data from a 124-item food frequency questionnaire completed at study entry (1995-1996) with the MyPyramid Equivalents Database (version 1.0). Other variables included energy, nutrients, multivitamins, and alcohol. Models were stratified by sex and adjusted for age, ethnicity, education, body mass index, smoking, physical activity, and menopausal hormone therapy (in women). During 5 years of follow-up, 3,110 incident colorectal cancer cases were ascertained. Although the indexes differ in design, a similarly decreased risk of colorectal cancer was observed across all indexes for men when comparing the highest scores with the lowest: Healthy Eating Index-2005 (relative risk (RR) = 0.72, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.62, 0.83); Alternate Healthy Eating Index (RR = 0.70, 95% CI: 0.61, 0.81); Mediterranean Diet Score (RR = 0.72, 95% CI: 0.63, 0.83); and Recommended Food Score (RR = 0.75, 95% CI: 0.65, 0.87). For women, a significantly decreased risk was found with the Healthy Eating Index-2005, although Alternate Healthy Eating Index results were similar. Index-based dietary patterns that are consistent with given dietary guidelines are associated with reduced risk.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Gerber M. The comprehensive approach to diet: a critical review. J Nutr. 2001;131(suppl):3051S–5S. - PubMed
    1. Jacques P, Tucker K. Are dietary patterns useful for understanding the role of diet in chronic disease? Am J Clin Nutr. 2001;73:1–2. - PubMed
    1. Jacobson HN, Stanton JL. Pattern analysis in nutrition. Clin Nutr. 1986;5:249–53.
    1. Kant AK. Indexes of overall diet quality: a review. J Am Diet Assoc. 1996;96:785–91. - PubMed
    1. Guenther PM, Krebs-Smith SM, Reedy J, et al. Healthy Eating Index- 2005. Alexandria, VA: Center for Nutrition Policy and Information, Department of Agriculture; 2006. (CNPP fact sheet no. 1) ( http://www.cnpp.usda.gov/Publications/HEI/healthyeatingindex2005factshee...)

Publication types