BeanDiet

Lord knows, there's more than enough breast cancer in the world. And we know that girls who enter puberty early are at greater risk for breast cancer. Now a study published in the journal of Public Health Nutrition tells us how diet influences the time of puberty onset...

Researchers at the University of Bristol, UK, followed young girls throughout their early lives, reviewing their diets at age 3, 7 and 10 years old. Girls who consumed the most meat were more likely to enter puberty early (before age 12) compared with those who consumed the least meat. Specifically, girls who ate the most meat at age 7 were 75% more likely to begin puberty before age 12 than the girls who ate the least meat.

In the words of the researchers: "These data suggest that higher intakes of protein and meat in early to mid-childhood may lead to earlier menarche. This may have implications for the lifetime risk of breast cancer and osteoporosis."

Here's to preventing breast cancer early!