People who have growths or “polyps” in the colon removed can cut their risk of developing recurrent polyps by strictly adhering to a diet low in fat and high in fiber, fruits and vegetables.

That’s according to a new analysis of more than 1,000 adults who took part in The Polyp Prevention Trial, which tested the impact of a low-fat, high-fiber diet on the recurrence of colon polyps - benign growths which may raise a person’s risk of developing colon cancer.

After 4 years of the trial, researchers saw no difference in the rate of polyp recurrence between the intervention group and the control group. However, the number of dietary goals met by the intervention group varied greatly, which may account for the lack of observed effect.

To investigate this theory, Dr. Leah B. Sansbury of the National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland, and colleagues revisited the data and looked at just how compliant the study subjects were with the low-fat, high-fiber diet.

They report in the American Journal of Epidemiology that of 821 participants in the intervention group who completed the study, 30 percent were classified as poor compliers, 45 percent as inconsistent compliers, and 26 percent as super compliers.

Subjects classified as super compliers consistently reported that they met or exceeded all of the dietary goals at all four yearly checkups.

Super compliers, Sansbury and colleagues discovered, had a 30% lower likelihood of developing a recurrent polyp, compared with controls, and nearly a 50 percent decreased odds of developing more than one recurrent polyp.

The findings support current recommendations to eat a low-fat, high-fiber diet for colon health and overall health.

SOURCE: American Journal of Epidemiology, September 1, 2009.