[Changes in food/nutrient intake and cancer mortality in Japan]

In Japan, the age-adjusted mortality rate (AAMR) for stomach cancer has been decreasing since around 1960 in both sexes. Conversely, the AAMRs for the cancers of the colon, pancreas, gallbladder and bile duct, lung, ovary and prostate have been increasing in the last 30 years. In this period, the amounts of intake of carbohydrate, rice and salted foods have decreased and those of fat, animal protein, meats, eggs, daily products, oils and fruits have markedly increased. Changes of the intake of those nutrients and foods may have contributed to the changes of the AAMR for some sites of cancer.