United States: Studies show that regular yogurt consumption over many years reduces the risk of developing dangerous colon cancer types.
Regular consumption of yogurt as an average of two servings per week over multiple years led people to experience a 20% risk reduction for aggressive colon cancer found mostly on the right side, according to research published in the journal Gut Microbes on February 12.
Beneficial Bacteria Behind the Protective Effect
The tissue analysis of tumors revealed Bifidobacterium bacteria, which normally exists in yogurt products.
“It has long been believed that yogurt and other fermented milk products are beneficial for gastrointestinal health,” co-senior author Dr. Tomotaka Ugai, a pathologist at Mass General Brigham in Boston, noted. “Our new findings suggest that this protective effect may be specific for Bifidobacterium-positive tumors.”
Consuming live bacteria from yogurt may improve health, according to new research on the human body’s microbiome, which is made up of billions of beneficial bacteria that line the digestive tract and other organs.
Investigating Diet and Microbiome Connections
As explained by lead study author Dr. Shuji Ogino, his team aims “to link long-term diets and other exposures to a possible key difference in tissue, such as the presence or absence of a particular species of bacteria. This kind of detective work can increase the strength of evidence connecting diet to health outcomes.”
Long-term yogurt consumption tied to decreased incidence of certain types of colorectal cancer.
— Professor Erwin Loh (@erwinloh) February 13, 2025
Study found that people who consumed two or more servings of yogurt per week tended to have lower rates of colorectal cancer positive for Bifidobacterium.https://t.co/h3RFDCFBNu pic.twitter.com/JacRn375AO
Large-Scale Study Supports Findings
The researchers examined long-term dietary records from two extensive U.S. population studies that included The Nurses’ Health Study with 100,000 women and The Health Professionals Follow-up Study consisting of 51,000 male participants.
Each study participant completed detailed questionnaires, which included questions regarding their daily yogurt consumption of unflavored and flavored types.
A long-term view of colon cancer development was available through participants’ data within both research studies.
A total of 3,079 people developed colon cancer within the 151,000 participant study. Research data about Bifidobacterium presence in cancer tissues became available for 1,121 tumors.
The study revealed 346 Bifidobacterium-positive tumors in 31% of cases, while 775 tumors showed negative Bifidobacterium presence in 69% of cases.
The Brigham team discovered that colon cancer risk levels in people did not change based on their yogurt consumption frequency.
Reduced Risk for Aggressive Tumors
The study results demonstrated that people who consumed two or more weekly yogurt servings experienced a 20% decreased risk of developing Bifidobacterium-positive tumors.
Right-side colon tumors appear to be responsible for this new cancer pattern because they develop from more aggressive cancer cells that scientists confirmed based on their research.
“Our study provides unique evidence about the potential benefit of yogurt” against certain cancers, said Ogino, who is chief of the Program in Molecular Pathological Epidemiology at Brigham.
Diet, Gut Microbiome, and Cancer Risk
Dr. Andrew Chan who served as co-author shared his agreement with the study at Massachusetts General Hospital’s Clinical and Translational Epidemiology Unit.
The research published in this paper expands existing data regarding dietary patterns and their effect on gut microbiome health alongside colorectal cancer risk rates according to Dr. Andrew Chan in the Brigham release.