San Francisco - One of the main ingredients in beer appears to thwart prostate cancer, according to findings released on Monday by researchers at a university in the American state of Oregon.
However, a person would have to quaff more than 17 pints to imbibe a medically effective dose of xanthohumol, the evident cancer-fighting chemical found in hops, according to researcher Emily Ho.
"From my studies, you would have to drink an awful lot of beer to get the amount that I saw," Ho told reporters. "So the counter-effects of the alcohol may outweigh any health benefits from drinking beer."
It was feasible to make pills containing concentrated doses of xanthohumol, a flavonoid, or to bump up the level of the chemical in hops, according to study co-author Fred Stevens of Oregon State University's College of Pharmacy.
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Scientists in Germany have already brewed up a beer containing 10 times as much xanthohumol as found with traditional recipes, according to Stevens.
"It tastes good," Stevens said of the beer, a microbrew with sales limited to within Germany. "It has a bit of a fresh taste."
The microbrew was marketed as a healthy beer, but any effect on cancer rates had yet to be established, according to Stevens.
"It is every man's dream to hear that beer and pizza can prevent cancer," said Richard Atkins, head of the US National Prostate Cancer Coalition, noting that a chemical found in tomato pizza sauce is another believed cancer fighter.
"Our hope is that men know the facts and get tested for prostate cancer. Food no matter how helpful it may be, is not a full preventive for prostate cancer."
While the research regarding xanthohumol is promising, Ho cautioned that further study is necessary.
"The one caveat is that all our work is done in a laboratory system using cultured cells with purified compounds," said Ho, an assistant professor at the university's College of Health and Human Sciences. - Sapa-AFP
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