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. 2025 Jun;155(6):1987-1998.
doi: 10.1016/j.tjnut.2025.04.028. Epub 2025 May 3.

Dietary Polyphenol Intake and Risk of Overall and Site-Specific Cancers: the Japan Public Health Center-based Prospective Study

Madoka Kishino  1 , Rieko Kanehara  2 , Nagisa Mori  3 , Junko Ishihara  4 , Ribeka Takachi  5 , Taiki Yamaji  6 , Motoki Iwasaki  7 , Shoichiro Tsugane  8 , Norie Sawada  1
Affiliations
Free article

Dietary Polyphenol Intake and Risk of Overall and Site-Specific Cancers: the Japan Public Health Center-based Prospective Study

Madoka Kishino et al. J Nutr. 2025 Jun.
Free article

Abstract

Background: Polyphenols may play a protective role in carcinogenesis through a wide range of properties, including antioxidant and anti-inflammatory. However, evidence for the association between total dietary polyphenol intake and cancer risk in Asian populations is limited.

Objective: This population-based prospective study aimed to investigate the association between polyphenol intake and risk of overall and site-specific cancer among Japanese.

Methods: Participants were 41,907 men and 48,268 women aged 45-74 y with no previous cancer diagnosis in the Japan Public Health Center-based Prospective Study. Dietary polyphenol intake was estimated by a 147-item food frequency questionnaire administered in 1995-1998. Participants were divided into quintiles (Q) according to intakes of total polyphenol and polyphenol from foods, not including high-polyphenolic beverages (tea, coffee, and alcoholic beverages). Hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for cancer risk were estimated using Cox proportional hazard regression models adjusted for potential confounders.

Results: During a median of 15.8 y of follow-up, 12,970 incident cancer cases (7999 men and 4971 women) were identified. We did not observe associations of lower risk of overall cancer with polyphenol intake. For site-specific cancers, compared with the lowest quintile (Q1), higher total polyphenol intake was associated with a lower risk of liver cancer in men (HRQ4: 0.67; 95% CI: 0.51, 0.89, HRQ5: 0.66; 95% CI: 0.48, 0.89; P-trend = 0.003) and women (HRQ5: 0.63; 95% CI: 0.39, 1.02; P-trend = 0.003), whereas higher polyphenol intake from foods not including tea, coffee, and alcoholic beverages was associated with a lower risk of colon cancer in men (HRQ4: 0.73; 95% CI: 0.58, 0.92, HRQ5: 0.72; 95% CI: 0.54, 0.96; P-trend = 0.07).

Conclusions: The results of the present study do not support a substantial role for dietary polyphenols in overall cancer prevention. Total polyphenol may reduce the risk of liver cancer, and polyphenol from foods, not including tea, coffee, and alcoholic beverages, may reduce the risk of colon cancer.

Keywords: Asian population; cancer incidence; cohort study; middle-aged and older adults; polyphenol intake.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest NS reports that financial support was provided by the National Cancer Center Japan, the Government of Japan Ministry of Health Labor and Welfare, and the Ministry of Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries. MK reports financial support was provided by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. All other authors report no conflicts of interest.

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