Doesn't fight colon cancer . . . in yet another demonstration of the good-for-you/bad-for-you cycle of health news, fiber has been found to have little, if no, impact on colon cancer. The study, held by the Harvard School of Public Health and Harvard Medical School, was published in this month's Journal of the American Medical Association.

To the dedicated fiber-eaters out there, scientists weren't trying to lead you astray. Initial research into the impact of fiber on colon cancer really did seem promising. The first doubts didn't surface until a 1999 Harvard study. Subsequent studies also questioned fiber's role in protecting against the disease, but in 2003 the issue was completely confused by two large studies that said, yes, fiber does help to prevent colon cancer.

Harvard's latest news goes back to the 1999 findings, but this time researchers have a better idea of why fiber was thought to fight colon cancer in the first place. Those who eat significant amounts of fiber tend to be healthier overall. They take more vitamins, eat more foods with folate, and consume less red meat. These factors may have a greater affect on colon cancer than fiber alone.

“People who eat high-fiber diets also tend to have healthier lifestyles and eat healthier diets, overall,” says Yikyung Park, ScD, the study's lead researcher. “All of these things together may influence risk.”

Fiber may have lost some significant cancer-fighting points, but it remains a strong champion against heart disease and type 2 diabetes.

For now.

[via WebMD]

(Photo: National Fiber Council)