Why is caffeine bad for fibroids

Balancing your hormone levels can help manage fibroid development and symptoms since hormones, particularly estrogen, are one of the leading causes of new fibroid development and growth. And one easy, non-invasive way to balance your hormones is through simple changes in your diet. If you are trying to manage your fibroids and maintain or shrink their current size, balancing your hormones naturally is a great first step.

For best results in managing your fibroids, try restricting the following food and drinks from your diet:. Added bonus? They may just help improve your general health while helping keep fibroids in check:. Supplements may also help shrink or maintain fibroid size.

Vitex, fish oil, and B-complex are a few supplements that have been known for creating a better hormone balance. Additionally, the fatty acids in fish oil or cold water fish may help fight inflammation that could contribute to fibroid growth. Be sure to speak with your physician before introducing new supplements into your diet.

Want to cook up something that may help your fibroids? Try this delicious recipe, courtesy of the Food Network. Roast at degrees F, turning once, until tender and slightly browned, 15 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and chopped chives. Women with fibroids who have difficulty getting pregnant may improve their chances of conceiving naturally or through in vitro fertilization after the fibroids are removed. Women who are close to menopause or who are done childbearing may decide it is better to have a hysterectomy.

With a hysterectomy, there is no chance for fibroids to regrow. The minimally invasive GYN surgeons at The Center for Innovative GYN Care work with patients to discuss the best option for treating fibroids based on their personal goals for fertility or their wish to keep their uterus. The groundbreaking LAAM procedure is one of the most minimally invasive fibroid removal surgeries that spares the uterus. Most patients recover in one to two weeks. Compared to open myomectomy procedures with a recovery in as many as eight weeks, women who have a LAAM myomectomy return to their lives faster with less pain.

Paul J. This personalized care helps patients understand their condition and the recommended treatment so they can have confidence from the very start. Our surgeons have performed over 25, GYN procedures and are constantly finding ways to improve outcomes for patients. Book a consultation today with Dr. Natalya Danilyants, MD. Women looking for a GYN specialist for a laparoscopic hysterectomy, endometriosis excision or fibroid removal travel to CIGC from around the world.

In particular, a small increase in myoma risk may be related to long-chain omega-3 fatty acid intake [ 25 ]. At the base there should be the estrogenic or inflammatory effects of dietary fat, as demonstrated by both a reduction of serum estradiol levels in relation to lower fat consumption among both premenopausal and postmenopausal women [ 35 ] and by a fat-related increase of T-helper cytokines, meant as a promoter either of systemic chronic inflammation or of fibrous tissue and smooth muscle growth [ 36 ].

As an example, dietary trans-fats lead to the production of proinflammatory cytokines and other inflammatory markers, which in turn lead to the secretion of enzymes in the endometrial extracellular matrix [ 37 ]. Conversely, it has been observed that polyunsaturated fatty acids are inversely associated with inflammatory cytokines [ 38 ].

It has also been observed that omega-3 fatty acids lead to membrane architecture remodeling and downregulation of the expression of genes involved in mechanical signaling and lipid accumulation in leiomyoma cells. Data about the effect of meat consumption on uterine myoma risk are contradictory. The association between meat consumption and uterine myoma risk are insignificant in the Chinese population, but significant for Italian women, mostly regarding beef, other red meat, and ham [ 27 , 30 ].

These contradictory results could be explained by the different dietary components in many countries. Equally contradictory are the data regarding fish intake and myoma risk, an association which is not recognized by the Chinese study [ 20 ], but reported as being an inverse association by the Italian case-control study [ 23 ].

According to the results of a cohort study conducted in the Great Lakes area in the United States of America, fish consumption was positively associated with fibroid risk, with an incidence rate ratio of 1.

This heterogeneity is justified by the difference in dietary compounds and pollutants in various countries, such as Polychlorinated Biphenyls PCBs , which are linked to myoma prevalence in animals, and whose levels vary widely in fish [ 41 ].

The literature has demonstrated an association between fruit and vegetable intake and uterine myoma risk. The results of these studies could explain the possible role of vegetable and fruit nutrition contents in the pathogenesis of uterine myomas. The BWHS evidenced that women who have four fruit or vegetable servings per day have a lower risk for developing uterine myomas, in comparison with women who have just one fruit or vegetable serving per day.

The same inverse association emerged from an Italian study that analyzed the relationship between dietary indicators and the risk of uterine myomas. According to the results of this study, women with uterine myomas reported a less frequent consumption of green vegetables and fruit. Similar to the results of the studies conducted in the Italian population and African-American women, two studies [ 20 , 42 ] performed on a Chinese population confirmed that vegetable and fruit intakes significantly decrease uterine myoma risk in premenopausal women.

He et al. Shen et al. They evaluated women with uterine myoma, enrolled by a questionnaire, who demonstrated a lower consumption of broccoli, cabbage, Chinese cabbage, tomatoes, and apples, in comparison to the healthy women. Moreover, the possible role of vegetables and fruit in myoma formation could be accomplished through dietary phytochemicals.

Dietary phytochemicals could modulate myoma pathogenesis, extracellular matrix deposition, cell proliferation, and angiogenesis, but further studies are needed to ascertain their therapeutic effects [ 43 ].

Extracts of some kinds of vegetables and fruit contain phytochemicals that have in vitro efficacy against uterine myoma proliferation. Islam et al. According to Islam et al.

Similar results were reported by Giampieri et al. They reported that leiomyoma cells which are treated with the methanolic extract of Alba and Romina strawberry cultivars induce apoptosis and increase intracellular reactive oxygen species levels [ 46 ].

It has also been observed that both extracts significantly decreased collagen 1A1, fibronectin, versican, and activin A messenger RNA expression in leiomyoma cells [ 45 ]. On the other hand, it has been reported that curcumin, a nutritional supplement with antineoplastic activity, lead to leiomyoma cell apoptosis and decreased fibronectin expression [ 46 ].

Dietary phytochemicals, such as quercetin and indolecarbinol, are recognized for their potential antiproliferative effect on leiomyoma cells. Both quercetin and indolecarbinol reduce the expression of fibronectin and collagen 1A1 in leiomyoma cells.

It has been reported that both quercetin and indolecarbinol reduce the migration of leiomyoma cells, as well as myometrial cell proliferation [ 48 ]. It has also been reported that lycopene, a major carotenoid in tomatoes, leads to a decrease in the incidence and size of leiomyomas in the animal model of oviducts of Japanese quail [ 49 ]. Similar results were observed by Sahin et al. Further clinical trials are needed to investigate the efficiency of lycopene and tomato powder supplementation in the prevention and treatment of uterine myoma in the human population.

Recent studies in animal models observed that resveratrol has an inhibitory effect on the proliferation of primary human myoma cell cultures. Chen et al. These findings indicated that resveratrol reduced extracellular matrix-related protein expression in primary human leiomyoma cells, and it is a candidate it for potential anti-fibrotic therapy for uterine myoma.

It is well known that alcohol, coffee, and tea consumption are associated with a higher risk of various diseases, but with regards to uterine myoma risk the available findings are still controversial. The BWHS reported a significant increase in myoma risk with 20 years or longer alcohol consumption as well as current alcohol intake, particularly beer.

This study has also reported the stronger association of beer consumption with uterine myoma risk, in comparison to wine and liquor consumption [ 53 ]. The California Teachers Study CTS significantly correlated a daily intake of at least 20 g of alcohol with the surgical treatment of myomas [ 54 ].

What has been highlighted is precisely the opposite of the mentioned studies, as the studies failed to document a significant association between alcohol consumption and uterine myomas [ 20 , 23 ]. The true mechanisms which link alcohol intake and myoma risk are still unknown. The hypothesized, but still unknown, mechanisms through which increased alcohol intake may favor the hormone-related growth of myomas are: 1 an increase of endogenous levels of estrogen through a reduction of estrogen metabolism [ 55 ]; 2 an interaction with a luteinizing hormone, with a consequent modulation of ovarian release of estradiol [ 56 ].

The BWHS also estimated the association between caffeine intake and uterine myomas. It did not report a relationship between caffeine consumption and uterine myoma risk overall, as confirmed by an Italian cross-sectional study [ 23 ]. A study examined the effect of caffeine consumption on ovarian hormones, showing that total caffeine consumption is associated with increased levels of early follicular-phase estradiol [ 57 ].

Caffeine inhibits phosphodiesterase and leads to the decreased clearance of cyclic adenosine monophosphates and through that mechanism enhances steroid production including female sex hormones [ 58 ]. It is also known that caffeine in high doses can induce stress-like effects in the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis, leading to the increased secretion of prolactin and a raised risk of uterine myoma [ 59 , 60 ].

There is a lack of studies regarding the possible association between tea consumption and uterine myoma risk, even if it is known that green tea extract leads to decrease of mouse uterine myoma cell proliferation as well as the decreased proliferation of human uterine myoma cell lines [ 61 , 62 ].

In fact, it was demonstrated that green tea extract and its active component, the epigallocatechin gallate EGCG , in vitro inhibits proliferation and induce apoptosis in Eker rat leiomyoma tumor 3 cells and likewise in vivo exerts an inhibitory effect on human myoma cell lines [ 61 , 62 ], modulating catechol-O-methyltransferase COMT expression and enzyme activity [ 63 ].

It was reported that uterine myoma volume increased in the placebo group, while significantly shrinking in the group who drank the green tea extract. It has also been reported that there was a significant reduction of uterine myoma-specific symptom severity and a significant improvement in the health-related quality of life in the group who drank the green tea extract.

Thus, green tea extract could be an effective, safe, and inexpensive therapeutic agent in women with symptomatic uterine myoma [ 64 ]. There are conflicting results concerning the impact of milk and dairy products on the risk of myoma onset and growth. The results are controversial, with an Italian case-control study [ 23 ] indicating an absence of an association, but a Chinese prospective cohort study [ 27 ] indicating the opposite result. Their multivariate analysis verified that frequent milk consumption is an independent risk factor for uterine myoma [ 27 ].

Additionally, a study on African-American women reported a protective role of frequent milk and milk product intakes per day on myoma onset and growth, showing also a lack of association for ice cream, butter, and cheese consumption and a weak inverse association for yogurt intake [ 25 ].

In fact milk components, such as calcium and butyric acid, seem to have antiproliferative effects on myoma cells [ 65 , 66 ]. Vitamins are bioactive compounds, present in food in differing amounts, which have many physiological functions, however, to date their relationship with myoma risk and prevalence has not been adequately investigated. According to the Terry et al. The BWHS showed an inverse association between dietary vitamin A and uterine myoma risk, but this was just for preformed vitamin A of animal origins and not for provitamin A from fruit and vegetable sources [ 22 ].

A cross-sectional study analyzed a total of women aged 20 to 49 years, reporting a statistically significant dose-response relationship between vitamin A and uterine myoma occurrence, after adjustment were made for race, body mass index, education, and age [ 68 ].

The results obtained from animal model investigations concluded that uterine myoma formation occurs partly due to decreased vitamin A exposure, as vitamin A has an antiproliferative effect on uterine myoma [ 69 ]. Nowadays, as claimed by the literature, vitamin C, folate, and vitamin E do not influence uterine myoma risk [ 22 , 68 ].

Many studies focus on vitamin D serum concentration in relation to myomas. Baird et al. In line with these results, Sabry et al. This latter association, once stratified for ethnicity, was confirmed only in African-American women but not in Caucasian women [ 71 ].

An analysis correcting outcome misclassifications by the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey NHANES proved that the inverse association between myoma and vitamin D levels exists only in white women [ 72 ]. Both an Italian study and similarly an Indian study documented that women affected by myoma had a significantly lower vitamin D3 concentration in comparison to unaffected women, as well as a higher proportion of severe vitamin D3 deficiency in comparison to healthy women [ 73 , 74 ].

The mean concentration of vitamin D in the serum of women with uterine myoma was lower compared to controls. Moreover, there was a higher proportion of severely vitamin D-deficient women in a group of women with uterine myoma, in comparison with a group of women without uterine myoma [ 73 , 74 ].

Comparable results were obtained from further studies conducted in Indian, Turkish, and Chinese women, confirming again the correlation of vitamin D serum levels with uterine myoma risk [ 75 , 76 , 77 ]. An Italian clinical trial, in addition to confirming the correlation between the largest myoma for each patient and vitamin D serum levels, proved that vitamin D hypovitaminosis correction through supplementation in women with myomas reduced the need for surgical or medical treatment [ 78 ].

Literature data indicate that vitamin D has multiple roles in the modulation of uterine myoma growth. It has also been reported that vitamin D inhibits uterine myoma cell growth through the downregulation of proliferating cell nuclear antigen and cyclin-dependent kinase 1 and the inhibition of COMT expression and activity. Additionally, it has been revealed that vitamin D regulates the expression and activity of matrix metalloproteinases, enzymes that play a role in extracellular matrix remodeling.

Moreover, vitamin D presents potent antiestrogenic and antiprogesterone activities through reducing the expression of the estrogen and progesterone receptors. Contamination of food by chemicals from the environment is an emergent and major global health, social, and food safety issue. The compounds which contaminate food belong to many various chemical groups.

Some of these compounds occur naturally in the environment, while some chemical compounds originate from human sources. These chemicals exert adverse effects on our health. Thus, it will be necessary to perform estimations regarding the potential associations of these compounds and human disease in the future [ 84 ].

As explained above, myoma development is hormone-dependent and is mediated by the estrogen and progesterone receptors in the myometrium. A Chinese case-control study revealed higher concentrations of phenolic environmental estrogens bisphenol, nonylphenol, and octylphenol in the urine and blood of the myoma group in comparison to the healthy group [ 86 ]. Conversely, the two Korean studies failed to prove that there is an association between bisphenol exposure and uterine myoma [ 87 , 88 , 89 ].

This latter, after adjusting for age, waist circumference, and parity, associated PM urinary concentration with higher uterine myoma risk [ 90 ]; additionally the FORGE study evidenced that PMs were positively correlated with fibroid size [ 91 ]. In fact, mRNA gene targets of phthalate-associated miRNAs were significantly associated with angiogenesis, apoptosis, and proliferation of connective tissues, thus PMs ultimately favor myoma development [ 92 ].

Several studies investigated the association between early-life exposure to diethylstilbestrol DES and the onset of uterine myoma. It is known that early-life exposure to DES during a sensitive window of development can reprogram normal physiological responses and alter disease susceptibility later in life [ 93 ]. The NHSII study evaluated the association between prenatal DES exposure and uterine myoma occurrence, evaluating that the first trimester of pregnancy, corresponding to the early stages of fetal Mullerian development, was the gestational period of DES exposure most at risk of myoma onset [ 78 ].

On a total of 1,, person-years of follow-up, there were 11, cases of uterine myoma presence and the study concluded that women with prenatal exposure to DES have had a higher incidence of uterine myomas when compared with unexposed women [ 95 ].

The Sister Study has evaluated the associations between several early-life factors and the early onset of uterine myoma early-onset uterine myomas were assessed based on the self-reporting of physician diagnosis of uterine myoma by the age of 30 years in non-Hispanic white women. This study revealed that one of the factors most strongly associated with early uterine myoma was in utero exposure to DES [ 31 ].

Conversely, Wise et al. There are not just organic compounds that influence uterine myoma risk. It has been revealed that heavy metals are associated with uterine myoma formation risk. A strong association with myoma risk has been reported for heavy metals, which are mostly present in smoking, polluted air, seafood, and leafy green vegetables.

The Endometriosis: Natural History, Diagnosis, and Outcomes ENDO study showed a direct correlation between uterine myoma diagnoses and increased serum levels of cadmium and lead and urinary cobalt levels, also proving the contribution of these trace elements to myoma growth [ 97 ]. The evidence of Korean women assessed showed no association between myoma and blood concentrations of heavy metals, however high serum concentrations increased the chances of having myoma.

Cadmium serum levels were significantly associated with myoma size [ 98 ]. Heavy metals may increase uterine myoma risk as they activate both the estrogen receptor in the absence of estradiol as a metaloestrogen [ 99 , ] and influence the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis as endocrine-disrupting compounds [ ].

Myoma-affected women presented higher levels of serum copper and chrome and lower serum levels of zinc in a Chinese study, and lower levels of serum selenium in a Bulgarian study in comparison to the healthy control groups [ ]. In the Japanese quail, commonly used as animal model of uterine myoma, supplementation with selenium and zinc reduced the incidences of spontaneously occurring myomas of the oviduct, thus suggesting a possible human benefit from selenium and zinc supplementation [ , ].

Our review of the literature led to these conclusions: a low intake of fruit and green vegetables is linked to a higher risk of myoma formation; vitamin D deficiency is associated with an increased risk for uterine myoma onset; pollutants ingested with food increase uterine myoma risk. It is unclear how exactly specific dietary products and nutrients influence uterine myoma onset. Future studies that control numerous potential confounders and consider different food content, environmental exposures, and ethnicities are necessary for further understanding of myoma biology and pathophysiology.

Conceptualization, A. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript. Authorship must be limited to those who have contributed substantially to the work reported. National Center for Biotechnology Information , U. Published online Jan Author information Article notes Copyright and License information Disclaimer. Received Dec 24; Accepted Jan This article has been cited by other articles in PMC. Abstract Uterine myomas or fibroids are the most common benign female tumors of the reproductive organs, associated with significant morbidity and quality of life impairment.

Keywords: uterine fibroids, myoma, diet, nutrition, dietary habits, fruit, vegetable, vitamin D. Open in a separate window. Materials and Methods In this review article, authors investigated the available data regarding the association between nutrition habits and dietary components and myoma onset and growth. Table 1 Food types and their influence on uterine myoma risk.