Is there an influence of dietary habits on breast density as seen on digital mammograms?

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the influence of dietary habit on breast density, which is an important risk factor for breast cancer. This cross-sectional study was performed on 64 Malaysian women of all races between the age of 35 to 70 years. All subjects underwent mammography and the breast density was analyzed from the images using BI-RADS by two independent radiologists. A validated food-frequency questionnaire was used to evaluate the nutrient intake. The data were analyzed using Chi-square test to evaluate the association of dietary habits to breast density. Based on the results, mutton, pork, vegetables, sweets, snacks, soy bean and eggs intake showed associations with increased breast density (p < 0.05) while grains, meat, beverages, oil and fruits, did not show any association (p > 0.05). As a conclusion, this study showed diet may make changes to the breast density as a risk factor for breast cancer.