Does sugar cause cancer: expert opinion

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There are many recommendations on the Internet about what to add or remove from your diet to prevent cancer. To the question of whether there is a connection between sugar consumption and the development of cancer.

The connection between lifestyle and the risk of cancer

Nutrition does play an important role in health, and poor nutrition can affect the likelihood of developing cancer. According to the American Cancer Society, about 1 in 5 cancer cases in the United States and about 1 in 6 cancer deaths can be attributed to poor diet, being overweight, lack of exercise, or alcohol.

The American Cancer Society recommends a healthy diet that includes plenty of vegetables, fruits, and whole grains, and limits red meat, sugary drinks, highly processed foods, and refined grains.

Does sugar contribute to cancer?

There is no evidence that simply cutting out sugar from your diet will stop cancer cells from spreading. If cancer cells don’t get sugar, they will start breaking down other components from other energy stores in the body, says Carrie Daniel-McDougall, M.D., a nutritional epidemiologist at the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.

Can Certain Diets Help Slow Tumor Growth

Some preliminary data from rodent and human trials suggests that a low-carb, high-fat ketogenic diet may help slow the growth of some types of tumors, such as colorectal tumors, when combined with standard cancer treatments like radiation and chemotherapy.

Researchers don't yet understand how it works, but there are some hypotheses. According to Neil Iyengar, MD, an oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, the ketogenic diet lowers levels of insulin, a hormone that helps cells absorb sugar. Studies in mice show that high insulin levels can weaken the ability of some treatments to slow tumor growth.

Iyengar says he and other scientists are studying the effectiveness of ketogenic diets in these types of tumors in clinical trials. But the ketogenic diet is probably one of those types of diets that is not applicable to reducing the risk of all types of cancer.

Can giving up sugar be considered cancer prevention?

Verdict

Reducing sugar intake will not stop the growth of cancer, but early evidence suggests that a low-carb diet may increase the effectiveness of some cancer treatments.