It's probably not what you think.
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By Korin Miller, Self
You may have heard recently about a seemingly freaky new study published in the journal Nature that found a link between sugar and cancer growth. Unfortunately, the details of the study are getting lost in the resulting panic that eating sugar actually causes cancer, which isn’t what the study actually found.
[post_ads]For the study, researchers from the University of Texas at Dallas investigated differences in metabolism between two major types of non-small cell lung cancer (one of the kinds of lung cancer that can affect smokers and non-smokers): adenocarcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma. Researchers looked at The Cancer Genome Atlas, a large government database that contains information from 11,000 patients who had one of 33 types of cancer.
The scientists discovered that a protein that transports glucose (aka sugar) to people’s cells was found in higher levels in lung squamous cell carcinoma than lung adenocarcinoma. The protein, which is called glucose transporter 1, takes glucose into a person’s cells, where it provides energy for those cells.
Researchers also looked at cancer cells from human and animal lung tissue and found the same thing: Sugar helped provide fuel to cancer cells in lung squamous cell carcinoma. Scientists also took a look at several other types of squamous cell cancer and found that glucose transporter 1 levels were higher in head and neck, esophageal, and cervical cancer patients.
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It’s easy to see why people might get lost in the technical aspects of the study and assume it means that sugar causes cancer, but experts say that isn’t the appropriate conclusion to draw—and the relationship between sugar and cancer is much more complicated than that.
[post_ads]For the study, researchers from the University of Texas at Dallas investigated differences in metabolism between two major types of non-small cell lung cancer (one of the kinds of lung cancer that can affect smokers and non-smokers): adenocarcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma. Researchers looked at The Cancer Genome Atlas, a large government database that contains information from 11,000 patients who had one of 33 types of cancer.
The scientists discovered that a protein that transports glucose (aka sugar) to people’s cells was found in higher levels in lung squamous cell carcinoma than lung adenocarcinoma. The protein, which is called glucose transporter 1, takes glucose into a person’s cells, where it provides energy for those cells.
Researchers also looked at cancer cells from human and animal lung tissue and found the same thing: Sugar helped provide fuel to cancer cells in lung squamous cell carcinoma. Scientists also took a look at several other types of squamous cell cancer and found that glucose transporter 1 levels were higher in head and neck, esophageal, and cervical cancer patients.
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It’s easy to see why people might get lost in the technical aspects of the study and assume it means that sugar causes cancer, but experts say that isn’t the appropriate conclusion to draw—and the relationship between sugar and cancer is much more complicated than that.
Having too much sugar isn’t great for you, and no one is arguing that fact.
But Rachele Rojednic, Ph.D., assistant professor in the nutrition department at Simmons College and staff scientist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, tells SELF that “the leap from this study to ‘don't eat sugar, it causes or feeds cancer’ is like trying to run and jump over the Grand Canyon.” Pojednic also points out one hugely important limitation that's worth noting: Researchers in the study treated cells with five times the amount of glucose that you would ever have in your body, she says, so the effect would be dramatically reduced in real-world situations.
[post_ads]With that said, yes, Americans eat too much sugar, and it’s something experts have increasingly warned about. The 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend that people have no more than 10 percent of their daily calories, which is about 12 teaspoons, or 50 grams, of sugar a day. The American Heart Association has stricter guidelines, recommending that women have no more than 25 grams of sugar a day and men have no more than 36 grams of sugar a day.
These recommendations are in place to prevent worrisome sugar-related health effects. In the long-term, sugar has been linked with a slew of serious health conditions. While it's complicated and not as easy as saying eating too much sugar directly causes any of the following, research has found a correlation between eating excessive added sugar and heart disease, inflammation, and obesity, among other things, which is why medical experts are urging people to cut back on how much added sugar they eat.
They're also cautioning against thinking "real" sugar, which is often advertised as being better than artificial sweeteners, like high-fructose corn syrup, is actually any healthier for you. In reality, "real" sugar is still sugar, and Americans are still eating way too much of it.
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When it comes to naturally occurring sugars, like the ones in fruit, your body does indeed tend to react to this sweet stuff better than the kind in, say, candy. Fruit comes with added nutrients, like the fiber in a skin's apple, to help slow your body's absorption of sugar. That's why experts recommend eating fruit as part of a balanced meal or snack with some protein and fat to further slow that sugar absorption. But overall, while most Americans eat too much added sugar, many also don't eat enough fruit—you definitely shouldn't cut out the latter in an attempt to fix the former.
But Rachele Rojednic, Ph.D., assistant professor in the nutrition department at Simmons College and staff scientist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, tells SELF that “the leap from this study to ‘don't eat sugar, it causes or feeds cancer’ is like trying to run and jump over the Grand Canyon.” Pojednic also points out one hugely important limitation that's worth noting: Researchers in the study treated cells with five times the amount of glucose that you would ever have in your body, she says, so the effect would be dramatically reduced in real-world situations.
[post_ads]With that said, yes, Americans eat too much sugar, and it’s something experts have increasingly warned about. The 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend that people have no more than 10 percent of their daily calories, which is about 12 teaspoons, or 50 grams, of sugar a day. The American Heart Association has stricter guidelines, recommending that women have no more than 25 grams of sugar a day and men have no more than 36 grams of sugar a day.
These recommendations are in place to prevent worrisome sugar-related health effects. In the long-term, sugar has been linked with a slew of serious health conditions. While it's complicated and not as easy as saying eating too much sugar directly causes any of the following, research has found a correlation between eating excessive added sugar and heart disease, inflammation, and obesity, among other things, which is why medical experts are urging people to cut back on how much added sugar they eat.
They're also cautioning against thinking "real" sugar, which is often advertised as being better than artificial sweeteners, like high-fructose corn syrup, is actually any healthier for you. In reality, "real" sugar is still sugar, and Americans are still eating way too much of it.
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When it comes to naturally occurring sugars, like the ones in fruit, your body does indeed tend to react to this sweet stuff better than the kind in, say, candy. Fruit comes with added nutrients, like the fiber in a skin's apple, to help slow your body's absorption of sugar. That's why experts recommend eating fruit as part of a balanced meal or snack with some protein and fat to further slow that sugar absorption. But overall, while most Americans eat too much added sugar, many also don't eat enough fruit—you definitely shouldn't cut out the latter in an attempt to fix the former.
The causes and progression of cancer involve so much more than a person’s sugar intake, or even what they eat in general.
Cancer is a "really complicated disease" that happens when a person's cells go haywire, Eric Lau, Ph.D., assistant member of the Chemical Biology and Molecular Medicine Program at Moffitt Cancer Center, tells SELF. That can happen due to genetic mutations, which are typically either inherited (meaning, you get them from your parents) or come about as a result of environmental factors that can cause cell mutations, like UV light from the sun, radiation, hazardous chemicals in pesticides, cigarette smoke, or pollution, he says.
[post_ads]“Although sugar itself as a substance will not cause cancer, it can promote cancer,” Lau says, pointing out that even that is an indirect link. As previously noted, eating too much sugar is definitely correlated with obesity and bodily inflammation, both of which can increase your risk of developing cancer, he explains. Lorenzo Cohen, Ph.D., a professor in the Division of Cancer Medicine at MD Anderson Cancer Center, agrees. “What we know about excessive sugar consumption is that it causes inflammation in the body,” he tells SELF.
Still, while there is some data that suggests that people who have a high glycemic load diet, i.e., a diet that contains a lot of carbohydrates and sugar, have an increased risk of cancer, no one has studied at at-risk population, like a group of people who eat a lot of added sugar, removed that sugar, and seen what happens to their cancer risk, he says. Cohen even notes this applies to his own research— a 2016 study he worked on, published in the journal Cancer Research, suggested fructose, the sugar found in fruit, may increase the growth of cancer. However, he points out that these findings apply to people who already have cancer and don't suggest that sugar actually causes the illness.
Cancer is a "really complicated disease" that happens when a person's cells go haywire, Eric Lau, Ph.D., assistant member of the Chemical Biology and Molecular Medicine Program at Moffitt Cancer Center, tells SELF. That can happen due to genetic mutations, which are typically either inherited (meaning, you get them from your parents) or come about as a result of environmental factors that can cause cell mutations, like UV light from the sun, radiation, hazardous chemicals in pesticides, cigarette smoke, or pollution, he says.
[post_ads]“Although sugar itself as a substance will not cause cancer, it can promote cancer,” Lau says, pointing out that even that is an indirect link. As previously noted, eating too much sugar is definitely correlated with obesity and bodily inflammation, both of which can increase your risk of developing cancer, he explains. Lorenzo Cohen, Ph.D., a professor in the Division of Cancer Medicine at MD Anderson Cancer Center, agrees. “What we know about excessive sugar consumption is that it causes inflammation in the body,” he tells SELF.
Still, while there is some data that suggests that people who have a high glycemic load diet, i.e., a diet that contains a lot of carbohydrates and sugar, have an increased risk of cancer, no one has studied at at-risk population, like a group of people who eat a lot of added sugar, removed that sugar, and seen what happens to their cancer risk, he says. Cohen even notes this applies to his own research— a 2016 study he worked on, published in the journal Cancer Research, suggested fructose, the sugar found in fruit, may increase the growth of cancer. However, he points out that these findings apply to people who already have cancer and don't suggest that sugar actually causes the illness.
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The bottom line: It's usually a good idea to slash your sugar intake, but doing so typically won't directly affect your cancer risk in some major way.
If you already keep your sugar intake within the recommended guidelines, Pojednic says cutting back won't necessarily have a huge impact on your cancer risk. Plus, if certain cancer cells crave glucose, they're going to target any glucose in your bloodstream, "which, incidentally, your body will make naturally, even if you don't eat it," she says.
If you already keep your sugar intake within the recommended guidelines, Pojednic says cutting back won't necessarily have a huge impact on your cancer risk. Plus, if certain cancer cells crave glucose, they're going to target any glucose in your bloodstream, "which, incidentally, your body will make naturally, even if you don't eat it," she says.
But, again, eating too much sugar isn't good for your body—and it’s not bad to try to cut back on your intake. “All the cumulative evidence shows that there is no harm to an individual in reducing the amount of added sugar in your diet,” Cohen says.
