B vitamin may help lower lung cancer risk

People with high levels of a B vitamin in their blood appear to have a lower risk of lung cancer, a large study has found.

However, before smokers race off to buy some supplements, the researchers were quick to stress that the best way to reduce your risk of the life threatening cancer is to quit smoking.

Past research has suggested that low levels of B vitamins may increase the amount of damage and possible mutations in DNA which can lead to the development of cancerous cells.

Researchers from the International Agency for Re­search on Cancer, Lyon, France, analysed the data from blood samples of nearly 400,000 people from 10 European countries which had been collected between 1992 and 2000.

They found that people with the highest levels of vitamin B6 in their blood were 56 per cent less likely to have developed lung cancer compared to those with the lowest levels.

The findings were true for both smokers, ex-smokers and people who had never smoked.

Similar results were also seen for the essential amino acid methionine. People with the highest levels of methionine in their blood were 48 per cent less likey to develop lung cancer compared with those which had the lowest.

Vitamin B6 is found in a variety of foods including pork, chicken, turkey, cod, bread, whole cereals (such as oatmeal, wheatgerm and rice), eggs, vegetables, soya beans, peanuts, milk, potatoes and some fortified breakfast cereals.

However, the results were not causal. Having higher levels of vitamin B6 and methionine in your blood may indicate a healthier diet overall which can lower the risk of many cancers, including cancer of the lung.

Dr Paul Brennan, who led the research said: "If further research does confirm our findings then the next step would be to identify the optimum B-vitamin levels for reducing future cancer risk."

The findings are published today in the JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association)

This article was published on Wed 16 June 2010