Dietary modulation in cancer prevention with reference to social and cultural food habits

Well-documented results of worldwide research on hazardous life-style factors pertaining to harmful food habits can be gainfully employed. They suggest that during pregnancy, lactation, childhood, and adolescence drastic control of oral intake of unessential hazardous food items be advocated for cancer control effective through adulthood. The sensitivity to carcinogenic initiators is shown to be great during growth periods in and out of the womb. During this dynamic developmental stage, criteria for safe levels of intake on an aggregate body weight basis remain indefinite. Unessential pleasure foods containing alcohol, tobacco, betel and related chews, fungal contaminants, nitrosatable ingredients, products of pyrolysis, and certain feed and food additives are cautioned against especially over the restricted growth period and discussed in terms of risk:benefit.