Table 3.
Association between tertiles (T) of dietary carbohydrates, glycaemic index (GI) and glycaemic load (GL) in relation to breast, prostate and colorectal cancers (Hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals)
| Breast cancer (n 124)*†‡ |
Prostate cancer (n 157)§†‖ |
Colorectal cancer (n 68)¶†** |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age adjusted |
Multivariable- adjusted |
Age adjusted |
Multivariable adjusted |
Age adjusted |
Multivariable adjusted |
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| At risk | Cancer cases | HR | 95% CI | HR* | 95% CI | At risk | Cancer cases | HR | 95% CI | HR§ | 95% CI | At risk | Cancer cases | HR | 95% CI | HR | 95% CI | |
| Carbohydrate intake (% energy) | ||||||||||||||||||
| T1 | 558 | 48 | 1·00 | 1·00 | 492 | 55 | 1·00 | 1·00 | 1049 | 27 | 1·00 | 1·00 | ||||||
| T2 | 573 | 45 | 0·80 | 0·53, 1·20 | 0·84 | 0·55, 1·30 | 506 | 50 | 0·83 | 0·56, 1·22 | 0·85 | 0·57, 1·27 | 1079 | 23 | 0·75 | 0·43, 1·31 | 1·26 | 0·68, 2·34 |
| T3 | 558 | 31 | 0·62 | 0·39, 0·97 | 0·59 | 0·36, 0·97 | 497 | 52 | 0·92 | 0·62, 1·35 | 0·95 | 0·62, 1·45 | 1056 | 18 | 0·63 | 0·35, 1·16 | 1·45 | 0·70, 3·04 |
| GI | ||||||||||||||||||
| T1 | 551 | 48 | 1·00 | 1·00 | 486 | 53 | 1·00 | 1·00 | 1059 | 18 | 1·00 | 1·00 | ||||||
| T2 | 572 | 31 | 0·65 | 0·42, 1·03 | 0·67 | 0·42, 1·06 | 522 | 62 | 1·09 | 0·75, 1·57 | 1·06 | 0·73, 1·55 | 1071 | 26 | 1·41 | 0·78,2·58 | 1·61 | 0·87, 2·98 |
| T3 | 566 | 45 | 0·91 | 0·61, 1·37 | 0·90 | 0·59, 1·37 | 485 | 41 | 0·74 | 0·49, 1·12 | 0·74 | 0·48, 1·12 | 1052 | 24 | 1·28 | 0·69, 2·35 | 1·51 | 0·81, 2·84 |
| GL (g/d) | ||||||||||||||||||
| T1 | 557 | 46 | 1·00 | 1·00 | 494 | 48 | 1·00 | 1·00 | 1051 | 25 | 1·00 | 1·00 | ||||||
| T2 | 575 | 44 | 0·87 | 0·58, 1·32 | 0·75 | 0·47, 1·22 | 506 | 58 | 1·24 | 0·84, 1·82 | 1·08 | 0·70, 1·68 | 1079 | 25 | 0·91 | 0·52, 1·58 | 1·19 | 0·61, 2·30 |
| T3 | 557 | 34 | 0·69 | 0·44, 1·07 | 0·54 | 0·26, 1·09 | 493 | 50 | 0·99 | 0·67, 1·48 | 0·76 | 0·40, 1·43 | 1052 | 18 | 0·66 | 0·36, 1·21 | 1·21 | 0·43, 3·40 |
For breast cancer, models were adjusted for age, smoking, alcohol, energy (multivariable method for GI and GL), menopausal status, hormone therapy use, age at menopause and number of live births.
Additional adjustment for BMI, waist circumference, height, pre·existing conditions (diabetes and CVD), antioxidant supplement use, education, and physical activity did not change these findings. An exception was the model on carbohydrate intake (% energy) in relation to breast cancer risk, where associations were no longer significant after adjustment for BMI and waist circumference.
The tertile cut·offs for breast cancer were: carbohydrate intake (% energy): T1: <48·2%, T2: 48·2–55·0%, T3: >55·0%; for GI: T1: <53·3, T2: 53·3–56·2, T3: >56·2; for GL (g/d): T1: <96·7g/d, T2: 96·7–136·0 g/d, T3: >136·0 g/d.
For prostate cancer, models were adjusted for age, smoking, alcohol, energy (multivariable method for GI and GL).
The tertile cut·offs for prostate cancer were: carbohydrate intake (% energy): T1: <46·2%, T2: 46·2–53·7%, T3: >53·7%; for GI: T1: <53·6, T2: 53·6–56·4, T3: >56·4; for GL (g/d): T1: <106·3g/d, T2: 106·3–154·4g/d, T3: >154·4 g/d.
For colorectal cancer, models were adjusted for age, sex, smoking, alcohol, energy (multivariable method for GI and GL), red and processed meat intake and fibre intake.
The tertile cut·offs for colorectal cancer were: carbohydrate intake (% energy): T1: <47·3%, T2: 47·3–54·4%, T3: >54·4%; for GI: T1: <53·5, T2: 53·5–56·3, T3: >56·3; for GL: T1: <100·7 g/d, T2:100·7–143·7 g/d, T3: >143·7 g/d.