Study Suggests Possible Link Between Sugary Drinks And Cancer
Findings suggest limiting sugary drinks might contribute to a reduction in cancer cases, say researchers
A study published by The BMJ today reports a possible association between higher consumption of sugary drinks and and an increased risk of cancer.
While cautious interpretation is needed, the findings add to a growing body of evidence indicating that limiting sugary drink consumption, together with taxation and marketing restrictions, might contribute to a reduction in cancer cases.
The consumption of sugary drinks has increased worldwide during the last few decades and is convincingly associated with the risk of obesity, which in turn is recognised as a strong risk factor for many cancers. But research on sugary drinks and the risk of cancer is still limited.
So a team of researchers based in France set out to assess the associations between the consumption of sugary drinks , artificially sweetened beverages, and risk of overall cancer, as well as breast, prostate, and bowel cancers.
Their findings are based on 101,257 healthy French adults with an average age of 42 years at inclusion time from the NutriNet-Santé cohort study.
Participants completed at least two 24-hour online validated dietary questionnaires, designed to measure usual intake of 3,300 different food and beverage items and were followed up for a maximum of 9 years .
Other chemical compounds, such as additives in some sodas might also play a role, they add.
A Sticky End For Sugar Research
Although theres no evidence that cutting carbohydrates from our diet will help treat cancer, important research has shown that understanding the abnormal ways that cancer cells make energy could lead to new treatments.
Back in the 50s, a scientist called Otto Warburg noticed that cancer cells use a different chemical process from normal cells to turn glucose into energy.
Healthy cells use a series of chemical reactions in small cellular batteries called mitochondria. The Warburg Effect, as it was dubbed following Ottos discovery, describes how cancer cells bypass their batteries to generate energy more rapidly to meet demand.
This shortcut for making energy might be a weakness for some cancers that gives researchers an advantage for developing new treatments.
Firstly, it opens up the potential for developing drugs that shut down cancer cells energy-making processes but dont stop healthy cells making energy. And researchers are testing drugs that work in this way.
Secondly, the abnormal processes in cancer cells can also leave them less able to adapt when faced with a lack of other nutrients, like amino acids. These potential vulnerabilities could lead to treatments too.
But these approaches are still experimental, and we dont know yet if treatments that starve cancer cells are safe or if they work.
Some Special Listed Foods
Peanuts are perhaps the No. 1 food that should be avoided because they are so high in fungus. Foods that have little resistance to invaders when they are growing are frequently high in fungus.
Corn, rice, and potatoes and any foods with corn, rice, or potatoes should be avoided because of fungus and the way they are stored.
Cashews are another food high in fungus.
Avoid processed apple juice.
Avoid oranges, tangerines, and dried fruits, for a variety of reasons.
Do not microwave any foods during a cancer diet.
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Can People’s Genes Affect Their Risk Of Alcohol
A personâs risk of alcohol-related cancers is influenced by their genes, specifically the genes that encode enzymes involved in metabolizing alcohol .
For example, one way the body metabolizes alcohol is through the activity of an enzyme called alcohol dehydrogenase, or ADH, which converts ethanol into the carcinogenic metabolite acetaldehyde, mainly in the liver. Recent evidence suggests that acetaldehyde production also occurs in the oral cavity and may be influenced by factors such as the oral microbiome .
Many individuals of East Asian descent carry a version of the gene for ADH that codes for a “superactive” form of the enzyme. This superactive ADH enzyme speeds the conversion of alcohol to toxic acetaldehyde. Among people of Japanese descent, those who have this form of ADH have a higher risk of pancreatic cancer than those with the more common form of ADH .
Another enzyme, called aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 , metabolizes toxic acetaldehyde to non-toxic substances. Some people, particularly those of East Asian descent, carry a variant of the gene for ALDH2 that encodes a defective form of the enzyme. In people who produce the defective enzyme, acetaldehyde builds up when they drink alcohol. The accumulation of acetaldehyde has such unpleasant effects that most people who have inherited the ALDH2 variant are unable to consume large amounts of alcohol and therefore have a low risk of developing alcohol-related cancers.
Natural Sugars That Are Safe For Cancer Patients
If you are battling cancer, the healthiest option is to limit your intake of conventional sugar or sugar substitutes. This is not to say that you must eat bland food, either, because some natural sweeteners are actually healthy for you. Refined sugars or an excess of certain unrefined sugars may oxidize your body, which is not good if you are healing from cancer, so, if you must eat it, use it sparingly.
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Research On Milk And Cancer
There is no evidence that suggests that you should not drink milk if you have cancer. According to a study published in the October 2004 issue of “The New England Journal of Medicine,” there is a link between height and breast cancer. Apparently, milk during childhood can contribute to a greater height but it may also increase the risk of breast cancer. The 2004 study does not show any correlation between current milk consumption and breast cancer.
How Can I Cut Down On Free Sugar
Its free sugar were mainly concerned with when it comes to weight gain, not sugar that is naturally found in foods like fruits and milk or healthy starchy foods like wholegrains and pulses .
One of the easiest ways to lower your added sugar is to cut down on sugary drinks, which are the largest source of sugar in the UK diet.
Some sugary drinks, such as fizzy drinks and energy drinks, can have more than the recommended daily maximum amount of free sugar in one serving alone. And while these extra calories promote weight gain, they offer no other nutritional benefits.
Other obviously sugary foods such as sweets, chocolate, cakes and biscuits are all best kept as treats too. But some foods that have hidden high amounts of added sugar may surprise you. Some breakfast cereals, ready meals , pasta sauces and yoghurts can have shocking amounts of sugar added to them. Reading nutrition information labels and checking the ingredients list can help you choose lower sugar options.
While there are steps you and your family can take to cut down on added sugar, making these changes can be easier said than done. And its here that governments need to lend a hand.
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May Improve Dental Health
Tooth decay is a well-documented side effect of consuming too much sugar.
When you consume sugary foods or drinks, certain bacteria in your mouth ferment the sugar. These bacteria then multiply and secrete acids that erode the protective enamel on your teeth.
In contrast, sugar alcohols like xylitol and erythritol may protect against tooth decay (
Summary
Some sugar alcohols may have the opposite effect as table sugar on dental health. Studies have shown that xylitol and erythritol may improve dental health and protect against cavities.
Sugar alcohols have a number of other potential benefits worth highlighting.
Damage To Body Tissues
Alcohol can act as an irritant, especially in the mouth and throat. Cells that are damaged by the alcohol may try to repair themselves, which could lead to DNA changes that can be a step toward cancer.
Once in the body, alcohol can be converted into acetaldehyde, a chemical that can damage the DNA inside cells and has been shown to cause cancer in lab animals.
Drinking alcohol can also lead to oxidative stress in cells, causing them to create more reactive oxygen species . These can lead to damage inside the cells that might increase the risk of cancer.
Alcohol and its byproducts can also damage the liver, leading to inflammation and scarring . As liver cells try to repair the damage, they can end up with mistakes in their DNA, which could lead to cancer.
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Benefits Of Good Nutrition During Cancer Treatment
When youre healthy, eating enough food to get the nutrients and calories you need is not usually a problem. Most nutrition guidelines stress eating lots of vegetables, fruits, and whole-grain products limiting the amount of red meat you eat, especially meats that are processed or high in fat cutting back on fat, sugar, alcohol, and salt and staying at a healthy weight. But when youre being treated for cancer, these things can be hard to do, especially if you have side effects or just dont feel well.
Good nutrition is especially important if you have cancer because both the illness and its treatments can change the way you eat. They can also affect the way your body tolerates certain foods and uses nutrients.
During cancer treatment you might need to change your diet to help build up your strength and withstand the effects of the cancer and its treatment. This may mean eating things that arent normally recommended when you are in good health. For instance, you might need high-fat, high-calorie foods to keep up your weight, or thick, cool foods like ice cream or milk shakes because sores in your mouth and throat are making it hard to eat anything. The type of cancer, your treatment, and any side effects you have must be considered when trying to figure out the best ways to get the nutrition your body needs.
- Feel better.
- Lower your risk of infection.
- Heal and recover faster.
Is Chocolate Good For You
Its been reported in the media for years that eating chocolate is heart-healthy, helps prevent cancer, and boosts your mood. But is that really true?
Research shows that flavanols in cocoa beans, an ingredient in chocolate, are antioxidants, meaning that they may reduce damage to cells. Damaged cells can lead to cancer development. What we dont know is whether chocolate itself has an effect. There have been a number of studies on the health benefits of chocolate, but they mostly asked people to remember how much chocolate or chocolate products they ate, then compared it to whether or not theyd had heart problems or cancer. So, while these studies are interesting, they really dont tell us if its the chocolate itself making a difference, or if its the flavanols, which can also be found in other foods.
Regardless, the studies have come back with mixed results. Some report that eating chocolate may lower the risk of certain cancers, while others show no benefit. Still others show that eating chocolate increases cancer risk. There is stronger evidence suggesting that eating chocolate may help prevent heart disease. Flavanols have been shown to lower blood pressure and make your heart, veins, and arteries work better.
But if you’re still craving chocolate, try small amounts of high-quality dark chocolate with at least 70% cocoa. It might give your heart some benefit, and it generally has less sugar and saturated fat than milk chocolate or other kinds of chocolate.
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There Are Seven Types Of Water:
1. Spring Water comes from a natural spring that forms from an underground source. The key for spring water is that it is directly from the source and is not recycled water. Spring water must carry the same properties in the bottle as when it is tapped from the spring. Some popular brands include Arrowhead, Evian, and Sparkletts.
2. Purified Water may be from a variety of sources but the key here is that it has been treated with some sort of action to purify it. Purifying essentially means: the bacteria and dissolved solids have been removed from the water by some process, making it purified. You may also use an at-home purification system to purify your tap water. Popular brands of purified water include Dasani and Aquafina.
3. Mineral Water naturally contains minerals . Minerals may include calcium, magnesium, manganese and more. Since mineral water contains natural minerals it often gets the reputation for being good for our health. Some mineral waters actually market themselves by the unique amounts of minerals they contain. Some mineral waters are high in minerals and some are low. Minerals usually contribute to a less pure taste sometimes salty and sometimes bitter.
Some technical lingo: Mineral water contains not less than 250 parts per million total dissolved solids. Popular mineral water brands include San Pellegrino and Perrier.
5. Tap Water direct from your faucet. Municipal tap water. Must meet the standards of the EPA.
Metabolomics Of Liver Tissues
Next, we investigated if changes in blood metabolite levels were reflected by changes in resected HCC tumor tissues compared to paired non-malignant surrounding hepatic tissues. 730 unique GC-TOF MS peaks including 194 identified metabolites were used to test for multivariate supervised discriminant analysis . a shows that sPLS-DA discriminates metabolic phenotypes of paired HCC tumors and corresponding non-malignant tissue samples for many patients. However, at least three patient tissues showed only a small variance in this plot and located in the overlapping regions of tumors and non-malignant tissues. The corresponding volcano plot showed that around 1/3 of all detected metabolites were found differentially regulated at raw p< 0.05 and that most compounds were higher in intensity in tumors than in non-malignant tissues.
Multivariate analysis of 730 peaks detected by untargeted GC-TOF MS metabolomics analysis of paired HCC tumors versus non-malignant liver tissues. sparse Projections to Latent Structures Discriminant Analysis . Blue: non-malignant tissues, red: tumor biopsies. Percentages give the total explained variance for vectors 1 and 2. Volcano plot for differential regulation of metabolites. Blue: not significant at raw p< 0.05, red: significant changes at p< 0.05.
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What Are Sugar Alcohols And Are They A Healthy Sugar Swap
In moving toward a healthier way of eating, many people reduce their intake of added sugars.
This has led to a surge in the popularity of sugar substitutes, such as sugar alcohols.
Sugar alcohols are added to foods, including baking mixes, cereals, and ice cream, to give them a sweet taste without the negative side effects associated with regular sugar.
Theyre healthier alternatives to regular sugar, but some people may wonder how they affect the body and whether they cause any side effects.
This article reviews what sugar alcohols are, how they affect health, and the downsides to consider if you choose to add them to your diet.
Sugar And Cancer What You Need To Know
- 7 minute read
1 in 2 of us will get cancer in our lifetime. All of us can support the research that will beat it.
This post was first published in 2017 but has been reviewed and updated in October 2020.
Theres a lot of confusing information and advice out there around sugar.
Does it cause cancer? Does sugar feed cancer cells, making them grow more aggressively? And how does the sugar we consume through food and drink affect our health, and what can be done about this?
In this post were taking a long hard look at sugar.
Well focus specifically on sugar and cancer, busting some myths and covering what researchers are studying in the hopes of finding new ways to treat people with cancer.
And well cover why the amount of sugar in our diets is cause for concern. A high-sugar diet can be bad news when it comes to cancer risk, but not for the reasons that often appear in the headlines.
But first the basics, what our bodies need sugar for and where it comes from in our diet.
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Forms Of Sugar Alcohol
Mannitol occurs naturally in pineapples, olives, asparagus, sweet potatoes and carrots. It is extracted from seaweed for use in food manufacturing. Mannitol has 50-70 percent of the relative sweetness of sugar, which means more must be used to equal the sweetness of sugar. Mannitol lingers in the intestines for a long time and therefore often causes bloating and diarrhea.
Sorbitol is found naturally in fruits and vegetables. It is manufactured from corn syrup. Sorbitol has only 50 percent of the relative sweetness of sugar which means twice as much must be used to deliver a similar amount of sweetness to a product. It has less of a tendency to cause diarrhea compared to mannitol. It is often an ingredient in sugar-free gums and candies.
Xylitol is also called “wood sugar” and occurs naturally in straw, corncobs, fruit, vegetables, cereals, mushrooms and some cereals. Xylitol has the same relative sweetness as sugar. It is found in chewing gums.
Lactitol has about 30-40 percent of sugar’s sweetening power, but its taste and solubility profile resembles sugar so it is often found in sugar-free ice cream, chocolate, hard and soft candies, baked goods, sugar-reduced preserves and chewing gums.
Isomalt is 45 – 65 percent as sweet as sugar and does not tend to lose its sweetness or break down during the heating process. Isomalt absorbs little water, so it is often used in hard candies, toffee, cough drops and lollipops.
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Understanding What A Cancer Diet Is
Cancer is caused by microbes inside the cancer cells. These microbes love sugar and dairy products.
With regards to cancer treatment, every food that we eat or drink can be categorized into categories:
- Foods that feed and strengthen the cancer cells and/or the microbes in the cancer cells and body. Examples would be refined sugar, refined flour, soda pop, dairy products, etc.
- Foods that cause cancer
- Foods that directly interfere with alternative treatments for cancer
- Foods that occupy and distract the immune system from focusing on killing the cancer cells
- Foods that contain nutrients that kill the cancer cells, stop the spread of cancer, or in some other way help treat cancer
In addition, there are things like cooking vegetables. The cooking destroys the enzymes in the vegetables and makes them far less digestible and far less effective in treating cancer. Pasteurizing any food or drink also does this.
Ideally during cancer treatment, if foods are allowed on a particular diet, 100 percent of everything you eat should be in the category of Foods that contain nutrients that kill the cancer cells, stop the spread of cancer, or in some other way help treat cancer. Whenever you eat food that is not in that category, you are interfering with your cancer treatment. This is why so many cancer diets are very high in raw vegetables and raw fruits.
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