Eating fruits and vegetables regularly might even reduce the risk of developing some types of cancer.

A new study on 79,952 men in the United States has found that a diet rich in vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds is associated with a 22 percent lower risk of developing colorectal cancer compared to those who eat the least amount of plant-based food.

"We speculate that the antioxidants found in foods such as fruits, vegetables, and whole grains could contribute to lowering colorectal cancer risk by suppressing chronic inflammation, which can lead to cancer," explains Jihye Kim, who researchers nutrition and dietetics at Kyung Hee University in South Korea.

"As men tend to have a higher risk of colorectal cancer than women, we propose that this could help explain why eating greater amounts of healthy plant-based foods was associated with reduced colorectal cancer risk in men but not women.".

Researchers found that a plant-based diet is associated with the biggest improvements in colorectal cancer risk among Japanese American and White men as opposed to African Americans.