Breast Cancer Risk Linked to Fatty Foods During Teen Years.

Teens who eat high amounts of saturated fats or low amounts of healthier mono- and polyunsaturated fats tend to have denser breasts 15 years later, new research suggests. Greater breast density is a risk factor for breast cancer.

While this study can't prove cause-and-effect, the researchers speculated that different fats may play different roles in breast tissue formation and maintenance. Teen years are a critical time for breast development.

The researchers found that higher intakes of unhealthy fats and lower intake of healthy fats during adolescence were associated with an increased risk of denser breasts. Experts and organizations such as the American Heart Association (AHA) recommend that a healthy diet should contain about 5 percent saturated fat.

Saturated fats come from beef, lamb, pork, poultry with skin, butter, cream, cheese and other whole or 2 percent dairy products, the AHA says. Polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats are found in fatty fish, avocados, walnuts, olives and liquid vegetable oils, the AHA notes.

Women who ate the most saturated fat during adolescence got about 13 percent of total calories from saturated fat. These women had an average breast density of 21.5 percent, the study found. Women who ate the least saturated fat -- about 8 percent of total calories from fat -- had a breast density of 16.4 percent.

A similar difference was found for those who ate the lowest levels of healthy fats during the teen years compared to those who ate the highest levels. Eating more healthy fats was linked with less breast density, the study said.

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