Could BEER help prevent cancer?



New research suggests hops - the flower that makes beer and gives it its zesty taste - could help fend off breast cancer. The plant has long been tied to hormone levels, with studies showing it gives men 'man boobs' and soothes postmenopausal symptoms by boosting estrogen metabolism.   And now, experts at the University of Illinois at Chicago claim that same process could activate chemicals that prevent tumors from developing.

Researchers applied hops extract to two different breast cell lines to monitor its effect on the cells' estrogen metabolism.  As hoped, the researchers found one potent compound in hops - 6-prenylnarigenin, or 6-PN - increased the rate of estrogen metabolism, boosting a detoxification pathway in the cells.

'We need to further explore this possibility, but our results suggest that 6-PN could have anti-cancer effects,' lead research Professor Judy Bolton said"

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