Eating deep-fried foods, such as French fries and fried chicken, on a regular basis may be tied to an increased risk of prostate cancer, a new study suggests.

Previous research has suggested that eating foods prepared with high-heat cooking methods, such as grilled meat, may increase the risk of prostate cancer. But this is the first study to look at how deep-fried foods may affect that risk, the study authors said.

Researchers examined data from about 1,500 men diagnosed with prostate cancer and about 1,500 men who did not have the disease. The men, who ranged in age from 35 to 74, provided details about their eating habits.

Men who said they ate French fries, fried chicken, fried fish and/or doughnuts at least once a week were 30 percent to 37 percent more likely to develop prostate cancer than those who ate such foods less than once a month.

Men who ate these foods at least once a week also had a slightly greater risk of more aggressive prostate cancer, according to the study, which found an association between deep-fried foods and prostate cancer risk but didn't prove cause-and-effect. The study was published online recently in the journal The Prostate.

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