A case-control study of diet and stomach cancer was conducted in Ankara, Turkey, between December 1987 and March 1988. One hundred patients with adenocarcinoma of the stomach were matched with 100 control subjects according to age, sex, and residential area. A dietary questionnaire was administered to all subjects by one of the authors. Gastric cancer patients consumed less fresh fruit and yellow-green vegetables (P < 0.000~) and meats (P < 0.001), and more salted food (P < 0.001), condiments (P < o . o O O ~) , and salt (P < 0.001) compared with the control group. Twenty-four percent of the gastric cancer patients and 4% of the controls had no refrigerator (P < 0.000~). There was no difference between the two groups with regard to the consumption of starches, fried foods, cereals, milk, dairy products, tea, alcohol, and tobacco. Stomach cancer patients brushed their teeth less frequently (P < 0.000~) and had more deficient teeth (P < 0.000~) compared with the control group. Cancer 65:2344-2348,1990. EVERAL STUDIES suggest that dietary factors may S play a role in the etiology of stomach cancer.'-'' Increased risk of stomach cancer has been linked to low dietary intake of fresh fruits and vegetables and increased consumption of starchy food^.^-'^ Others have reported an increased risk of gastric cancer in populations who consumed less milk and dairy product^,'^^'^ and rneat,l4
or more salted foods.1'-13,'5 Some studies showed an association between intake of nitrates and nitrate-containing compounds and stomach cancer Based on these studies it has been suggested that certain foods, such as fresh vegetables and fruits, may contain anticarcinogenic substances, and others, such as salted or fried foods, may contain carcinogens.
Gastric cancer remains a leading cause of cancer death in Turkey, and the mortality rate has declined little over the past several decades." We investigated the role of dietary habits; oral hygiene; alcohol, tea, and tobacco con-