Reducing carbohydrate consumption may help to prevent cancer

This paper was published in Nutrition and Metabolism 2011 Oct 26;8(1):75

Study title and authors:

Is there a role for carbohydrate restriction in the treatment and prevention of cancer?

Klement RJ, Kammerer U.

This paper can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22029671

Dr. Rainer J Klement from the University Hospital of Wurzburg reviewed the evidence of 162 scientific papers regarding the subject of carbohydrate restriction and cancer.

Dr. Klement found:

• Cancer, which might be considered a disease of civilization, was very rare among uncivilized hunter-gatherer societies. Their diet was mainly meat and fat, whereas modern diets have quickly changed to easily digestible carbohydrates derived mainly from grains. Our genes have not had time to adapt to the new carbohydrate foods, and diseases of civilization have ensued.
• Reducing the amount of dietary carbohydrates could stop, or at least delay, the emergence of cancer, and that growth of already existing cancer could be slowed down.
• Most carbohydrates are converted into glucose by the body. Most cancer cells depend on glucose for growth as their ability to use fats or ketone bodies has been impaired.
• High carbohydrate diets cause a rise in insulin and insulin like growth factor levels which promote cancer growth.
• Ketone bodies that are elevated when insulin and blood glucose levels are low, have been found to stop cancer cells growing.

Dr. Klement concludes that the evidence presented in the review shows that reduction of the high carbohydrate intake in modern diets may play an important role in cancer prevention. 

Research by a Nobel prize winner shows that high carbohydrate diets cause cancer

This paper was published in Science 24 February 1956: Vol. 123 no. 3191 pp. 309-314

Study title and author:
On the origin of cancer cells
Warburg O

This paper can be accessed at: http://www.sciencemag.org/content/123/3191/309.extract

Otto Warburg won the Nobel prize for medicine in 1931 for discovering that cancer cells are fundamentally different compared to healthy cells.

He found that energy and growth in cancer cells is mainly generated by the fermentation of glucose, unlike normal cells which contain tiny organelles inside them called mitochondria which work away producing enegy to keep the cells healthy. The mitochohdrial activity in cancer cells is impaired and cancer cells can use glucose by up to 200 fold the rate of healthy cells.

How does this relate to cancer and diet?

To produce energy humans mainly use either:
(i) Fat and ketone bodies.
(ii) Glucose.

Fat may be provided by dietary fat, and ketone bodies are compounds that are produced when fats are broken down for energy by the liver and kidneys. Almost all carbohydrates are broken down by the body into glucose.

Fat and ketone bodies need mitochondria to provide energy, whilst glucose also has the ability to provide energy by fermentation. This means that fat, ketone bodies and glucose can be used for energy by healthy cells, but only glucose can be used by cancer cells.

The implication of this is if you follow a very low carbohydrate diet it is very difficult for cancerous cells to survive because they will have little or no energy to feed on.

Warburgs research shows that a high carbohydrate diet will encourage cancer growth, whereas a diet low in carbohydrate and high in fat discourages the growth of cancer.          

High fat diet reduces breast cancer

This post includes a summary of a paper published in the Lancet 1996 May 18;347(9012):1351-6 and a recipe for pancakes.

Study title and authors:

Intake of macronutrients and risk of breast cancer.

Franceschi S, Favero A, Decarli A, Negri E, La Vecchia C, Ferraroni M, Russo A, Salvini S, Amadori D,  Conti E, Montella M, Giacosa A.

Servizio di Epidemiologia, Centro di Riferimento Oncologico, Aviano, Italy.

This paper can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8637339

This study assessed the relationship of dietary fat and carbohydrate with the risk of breast cancer. 2569 women with breast cancer (average age 55 years) and 2588 control women (maverage age 56 years) in hospital with other non cancerous diseases completed a validated food-frequency questionnaire

The study found:

(a) Women with the lowest intake of dietary fat had a 19% higher incidence of breast cancer than women with the highest intake of dietary fat.

(b) Women with the highest intake of carbohydrate had a 30% higher incidence of breast cancer than women with the lowest intake of carbohydrate.

More information on this subject: Books : Scientific Studies : Other Websites : Videos : Food Mall 

Recipe of the day

Pancakes

Makes 10-12

Food Mall: Eggs

Ingredients:

◦1 ½ c almond flour

◦½ c coconut milk
◦1 T sugar
◦1 t baking soda
◦1 t baking powder
◦1 t vanilla
◦5 eggs
◦ lard

Method:
Blend all the ingredients in your blender. Set your cast iron pan or griddle on medium heat and melt some lard. Ladle the batter into whatever size you’d like–coin, silver dollar, big ol’ fatties. Once tiny, little bubbles form around the edges of the pancake, it’s ready to flip.

Pancakes

Ketogenic diet stops cancer growth

This paper was published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition Vol 14, Issue 2 202-208

Study title and authors:

Effects of a ketogenic diet on tumor metabolism and nutritional status in pediatric oncology patients: two case reports

L. C. Nebeling, F. Miraldi, S. B. Shurin and E. Lerner

Nutrition Department, Case Western Reserve University, School of Medicine, Cleveland, Ohio, USA.

This study can be accessed at: http://www.jacn.org/cgi/content/abstract/14/2/202?ijkey=6ee63d73e36021de5c47971afed07b57dc85baaf&keytype2=tf_ipsecsha

Glucose is implicated in the growth of cancer. See here.

This study set out to determine if the high fat, ketogenic diet would decrease glucose availability to brain cancer tumors in 2 children, thereby potentially stopping the growth of the cancer. And without adversely affecting the children's overall nutritional status. The children were monitored for an 8 week period.

The study found:

(a) Within 7 days of initiating the ketogenic diet, blood glucose levels declined to low-normal levels.

(b) There was a 21.8% average decrease in glucose uptake at the tumor site in both subjects.

(c) One patient had significant clinical improvements in her mood and new skill development during the study. She continued the ketogenic diet for an additional twelve months, remaining free of disease progression.

Nebeling concludes that the ketogenic diet may be useful in the treatment of cancer.

AMAZON UK Dr. Atkins' Age-defying Diet Revolution: Feel Great, Live Longer

AMAZON USA Dr. Atkins' Age-Defying Diet

Ketogenic diets may be used as a thearpy for brain cancer

This post includes a summary of a paper published in the British Journal of Cancer 2003 89, 1375–1382 and a recipe for pork steak with tomatoes and collards.

Study title and authors:

Role of glucose and ketone bodies in the metabolic control of experimental brain cancer

T N Seyfried1, T M Sanderson1, M M El-Abbadi1, R McGowan1 and P Mukherjee1

Books:

1Biology Department, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA 02467, USA

This paper can be accessed at: http://www.nature.com/bjc/journal/v89/n7/abs/6601269a.html

The paper notes that brain tumours are dependent largely on glucose for energy. This contrasts with normal brain tissue that can derive energy from both glucose and ketone bodies.

The results of the study indicate that growth of malignant brain cancer may be potentially stopped or slowed down with a ketogenic diet that reduces glucose and elevates ketone bodies.

More information on this subject: Books : Scientific Studies : Other Websites : Videos : Food Mall 

Recipe of the day

Pork Steak with Tomatoes and Collards

Ingredient list:

Food Mall: Pork Steaks

1 bone-in pork steak (1-1.5 pounds)

1 bunch of collards (10-15 stems)
1 sweet yellow onion
28 ounce can of peeled tomatoes
6 ounce can of tomato paste
Chipotle chili pepper powder
1 teaspoon of crushed garlic
Extra virgin olive oil
Ground nutmeg
Black pepper
Celery salt
Salt

Directions:
Add olive oil to pressure cooker over medium heat. Chop onion into bite-sized pieces, add to pot, and cook until soft. Season with a little celery salt (if you have it). Add 1 teaspoon of crushed garlic and let cook with onions for 1 minute. Add can of tomatoes and crush them with a potato masher or a large fork. Fill can with water and add it to the pot. Wash collards, discard stems, and cut leaves into 2-inch pieces. Add collards to the pot and season with salt, pepper, and ground nutmeg. I like a nice dusting of each. Season pork steak on both sides with salt and chipotle chili pepper powder and lay pork on top of vegetables. Add can of tomato paste on top of pork steak. Lock top on pressure cooker. Increase heat to high. After achieving high pressure, reduce heat to the lowest level consistent with maintaining high pressure. Cook under high pressure for 20 minutes. Turn off heat under pressure cooker, use the slow-release method to bring pressure down, and remove top. Transfer pork steak to a plate. Fill the rest of the plate with vegetables. Enjoy!



The many health benefits of a ketogenic diet

This post contains a summary of a paper published in Pediatrics Vol. 119 No. 3 March 2007, pp. 535-543 and a recipe for lamb shanks with horseradish and rosemary.

Study title and authors:
The Ketogenic Diet: One Decade Later
John M. Freeman, MD, Eric H. Kossoff, MD, Adam L. Hartman, MD
John M. Freeman Pediatric Epilepsy Center, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, Maryland

This paper can be accessed at: http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/119/3/535#R2

Books:

The paper concludes: "The past decade has been an amazing one for those interested in the Ketogenic diet (KD). Its increasing use in children with difficult-to-control seizures has opened new vistas for these children and also for our understanding of epilepsy. Its potential use in adults by using a less restrictive Atkins diet may make a difference to this population as well. The diet’s documented efficacy and tolerability have opened new horizons as it is tried for a variety of ills from brain tumors to migraine, and from head trauma to neurodegenerative diseases. Most exciting is the realization that beliefs concerning a high-fat diet making people fat and dyslipidemic have been proven false. Researchers are rediscovering that ketone bodies are not necessarily bad and that glucose is not necessarily good. A whole new era of metabolic research has opened up. It is not completely clear where it will lead, but its promise is exciting".

More information on this subject: Books : Scientific Studies : Other Websites : Videos : Food Mall 

Recipe of the day

Lamb Shanks with Horseradish and Rosemary

 

Ingredients:

Food Mall: Lamb

2 lamb shanks

15ml/1tbsp oil

2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed

1 onion, peeled and chopped

1 carrot, peeled and chopped

2 celery stalks, sliced

30ml/2tbsp horseradish sauce or fresh horseradish

400g/14oz tomato passata

Salt and freshly milled black pepper

300ml/½pint good, hot lamb stock

2 fresh rosemary stalks

Method:

1.Preheat the oven to Gas mark 3, 150ºC, 325ºF.

2.Heat the oil in a large frying pan, add the lamb shanks and fry until golden all over (approx 10 minutes). Add the garlic, onion, carrot, celery, horseradish sauce and stir together. Pour over the passata, stock and bring to boil. Season. Pour into a casserole dish and add the rosemary.

3.Cover and cook for 2 hours.

 



The ketogenic diet is an effective therapy for malignant brain cancer

The calorically restricted ketogenic diet, an effective alternative therapy for malignant brain cancer
Weihua Zhou , Purna Mukherjee , Michael A Kiebish , William T Markis , John G Mantis and Thomas N Seyfried
Department of Biology, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, USA

Nutrition & Metabolism 2007, 4:5

This paper can be accessed at: http://www.nutritionandmetabolism.com/content/4/1/5

The study indicated that a ketogenic diet is a safe and effective diet therapy, and should be considered as an alternative therapeutic option for malignant brain cancer.

AMAZON UK Life Without Bread: How a Low-Carbohydrate Diet Can Save Your Life
AMAZON USA Life Without Bread: How a Low-Carbohydrate Diet Can Save Your Life

ADVERT: Click here for Female Fat Loss Over Forty. This is the smart woman's guide to fitness and fat loss at home.

Click here to find out how to get the FREE shopping APP that finds you the cheapest prices for all your shopping

Ketogenic diets may slow down or stop cancer growth

Published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association Volume 95, Issue 6, June 1995, Pages 693-697

Implementing A Ketogenic Diet Based on Medium-chain Triglyceride Oil in Pediatric Patients with Cancer
LINDA C. NEBELING PhD, MPH, RDa and EDITH LERNER PhD, b
a At the time of the study, L.C. Nebeling was a doctoral candidate in the Nutrition Department of Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio. Currently, she is a Cancer Prevention Fellow in the Division of Cancer Prevention and Control, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Md, USA
b E. Lerner is vice chairman of the Nutrition Department, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA

This paper can be accessed at: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B758G-48JBBTS-N&_user=10&_coverDate=06%2F30%2F1995&_rdoc=1&_fmt=high&_orig=search&_sort=d&_docanchor=&view=c&_searchStrId=1307276983&_rerunOrigin=scholar.google&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=116cdef3249b6c12f7f8520a3a2dfab8

A ketogenic diet was seen to slow down or stop tumor growth, whilst at the same time providing a good nutritional diet.
The author notes that a ketogenic diet is given to children with epilepsy to improve seizure control.

AMAZON UK Trick and Treat: How Healthy Eating is Making Us Ill
AMAZON USA Trick And Treat - how 'healthy eating' is making us ill

ADVERT: Click here to see how the low GI diet can prevent you from heart disease, stroke & diabetes.

Click here to find out how to get the FREE shopping APP that finds you the cheapest prices for all your shopping