Studies have not established the effect of currants on breast cancer

Currants are small sour berries that are normally eaten in dried form (resembling small raisins) in the U.S. Black currants (Ribes nigrum), red currents (R. rubrum) and white currants (R. sativum) are the most common varieties. Currants, which are related to gooseberries (Ribes uva-crispa), are good sources of vitamin C and fiber. Darker varieties are rich sources of anthocyanins, which have been reported to have anticancer properties. Currants also contain myricetin and quercetin, ellagic acid, and the isoflavone phytoestrogens genistein and daidzein. Currants have been shown to have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Currant roots and seeds are high in gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), which has been traditionally used to treat pre-menstrual syndrome and other "female" health problems.

Breast cancer-related effects of eating currants

Currants share many of the properties of blueberries and cranberries and therefore would be expected to have similar chemopreventive effects against breast cancer. However, the few population studies that have been undertaken which have included currants have not attempted to isolate the effects of this berry. Therefore, we cannot include currants on our recommended list.

Additional comments

Black currant seed oil, evening primrose oil, and borage oil are all marketed as sources of GLA. GLA is an omega-6 unsaturated fatty acid with anti-inflammatory properties (unlike the omega-6 fatty acids in vegetable oils, which tend to be pro-inflammatory). GLA and its metabolites affect the expression of various genes, including ones that play a significant role in immune functions and cell death. Most people obtain abundant levels of GLA through their diets (GLA is produced in the body from linoleic acid) and do not need supplementation. Black currant oil, evening primrose oil, and borage oil have numerous biologically active components (such as flavonols and phenolic acids) in addition to GLA and their health-related effects may be the result of these other components.

Consumers should be aware that, like cranberry juice, currant juice may have high levels of sweeteners.

Tags: GLA, anthocyanin, currants, flavone, flavonoids, isoflavones, omega6, quercetin, vitaminC

Selected breast cancer studies
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Bioactivity and chemical composition of blackcurrant (Ribes nigrum) cultivars with and without pesticide treatment Anticancer Activities of an Anthocyanin-Rich Extract From Black Rice Against Breast Cancer Cells In Vitro and In Vivo Dietary quercetin exacerbates the development of estrogen-induced breast tumors in female ACI rats Identification of Flavonoid and Phenolic Antioxidants in Black Currants, Blueberries, Raspberries, Red Currants, and Cranberries Erythrocyte fatty acids and risk of proliferative and nonproliferative fibrocystic disease in women in Shanghai, China Dietary berries and ellagic acid diminish estrogen-mediated mammary tumorigenesis in ACI rats Cytoprotective effects of anthocyanins and other phenolic fractions of Boysenberry and blackcurrant on dopamine and amyloid -induced oxidative stress in transfected COS-7 cells Anthocyanin-rich berry extracts and epigallocatechin gallate reduce the enhanced invasiveness of estrogen-negative human breast carcinoma cells elicited by serum Effects of anthocyanins and other phenolics of boysenberry and blackcurrant as inhibitors of oxidative stress and damage to cellular DNA in SH-SY5Y and HL-60 cells Flavonoids and Breast Cancer Risk in Italy Inhibition of Cancer Cell Proliferation in Vitro by Fruit and Berry Extracts and Correlations with Antioxidant Levels Dietary berries and ellagic acid diminish polar DNA adducts in ACI rats treated with 17ß-estradiol Differential modulation of cisplatin and doxorubicin efficacies in leukemia cells by flavonoids Effects of gamma-linolenic acid and oleic acid on paclitaxel cytotoxicity in human breast cancer cells