Angela......about sugar

[Janet]

Hello Angela.

This is the first time I've posted here. I usually post on the general b/c board as Elle......but my real name's Janet. (It's a boringly long story :))

I've been reading through the posts looking for help with my own situation and came across your post about sugar and cancer on page 2. Here are some links with lots of info and the answers to your question "why no sugar". I hope this helps.

One important fact that I don't think is covered in any of these links is the fact that insulin blocks the formation of a very important binding protein. I'll try to keep it simple. Your body produces a growth factor called IGF-1 (Insulin-Like Growth Factor). Most b/c cells have receptors for IGF and when IGF-1 is attached to these receptors it stimulates the cancer cells in exactly the same way as oestrogen does with ER+ cells.

One of the ways that Tamoxifen actually works is by lowering the levels of free circulating IGF-1. Although your body makes IGF-1, the liver (if memory serves me right) also produces a binding protein called IGFBP3. It's job is to bind with any free circulating IGF, rendering it harmless. If IGF isn't bound to this protein then it is free to dock on to any receptors on the cancer cells and tells them to grow. So this binding protein is very important if you have b/c.

When you eat sugar of any kind, insulin is produced as a direct result. Insulin stops the formation of the binding protein that you need to inactivate the IGF. So, the less sugar you eat, the less free circulating IGF you have.....in theory anyway :)

I hope that wasn't too confusing. I do have research to support this, so if you would like it let me know.

Here are the links I promised.

http://www.mercola.com/2000/oct/8/sugar_cancer.htm

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12208894&dopt=Abstract


http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=9770725&dopt=Abstract


http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=8375922&dopt=Abstract

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=9806115&dopt=Abstract


http://www.mercola.com/article/sugar/sugar_cancer.htm
http://www.mercola.com/article/Diet/sugar/dangers_of_sugar.htm


Hope this helps.

Love,
Janet

[Angela]

Janet,

Thank you for the information. I found it very interesting. So do you think people with BC should not eat any surgar? Or should we just try to maintain insulin at a low level? I love sweets so I do tend to over indugle. I am suprised that my onc has not mentioned anything to me about what foods to eat.

Thanks for the information.
Hugs and Smiles,
Angela

[Janet]

Well, you did ask and I have to be honest, I believe that sugar should be avoided if you've had b/c. This is my opinion based on all the available research. I've given up many things since my diagnosis and am still refining my diet now. My new diet is one for life.

The thing is you can't eat sugar AND keep your insulin levels low. Every time you eat sugar you have an surge in insulin levels. It's a natural response. When you eat simple sugars your body actually goes in to a state of emergency and insulin is produced in an effort to regain homestasis (sp?)...that is the right balance.

Oh and don't be surprised that your onc hasn't advised you about diet. Remember he/she is an oncologist and as such ONLY specializes in oncology.....not nutrition. Respect him for his exptertise in his own field.....no more and no less.

Love and best wishes to you,
Janet.
xx

[Barb]

Thanks so much for the information. It takes a lot of time to research, so I appreciate you passing along what you have found.

Blessings..Barb

[Barb]

I assume this would also apply to the sugars in carbohydrates/fruits, etc??

Barb

[Sandy]

It is my understanding this pertains to white processed sugar as well as brown sugar. One can use honey, or natural sweetners such as date sugar, and there are others at the health food store. At my health food store here I am not able to buy white or brown sugar. Fruits are natural sugars however, carbs contain processed sugars. Any comments please feel free to respond. We are all learning from each other. Hugs, Sandy

[Janet]

Hello Meredith.

I'm so sorry that your seemingly healthy diet and lifestyle didn't save you from this horrible disease. I just wanted to point out that I'm not saying sugar 'causes' cancer. All I'm saying is that it is wise to cut out all simple sugars such as table sugar and foods containing it, refined carbs, etc., AFTER a diagnosis of b/c. While sugar consumption may not be a direct cause of b/c it most certainly adds to a favourable environment for a cancer to flourish once it's already established.

Even the most seemingly healthy eaters can't avoid ALL the causal factors for b/c. There's much more to it than simply eating unprocessed foods and little sugar etc. I've had many vegetarians say to me that their healthy diet and lack of dairy didn't save them from b/c. But what you must also consider is:

1. Most vegetarians replace meat with dairy products.
2. Those lifelong vegetarians who claim not to have eaten dairy products either, aren't aware of just how much dairy they have been consuming by way of other every day foods, not to mention pills and medications. For example:
Crisps (potatoe chips if you're in the USA)
Cakes.
Biscuits.
Sauces.
'Healthy' nutrition bars.
Pills and meds.
Vit supplements,
etc, etc, etc.

3. Even vegans get b/c, but have much lower rates because even the healthiest diet doesn't save you from all the other lifestyle factors that are implicated in b/c. For example:

Vegans still use plastics.
They also eat food that is shrink wrapped.
A vegan who doesn't eat organic is still exposed to pesticides.
Then there's radiation. How many healthy eaters sit behind a pc day in day out.....hours at a time?
How many live close to power lines, mobile phone masts and other sources of radiation?

etc, etc, etc.

My point is that if you have b/c then you were exposed to some of the risk factors for getting it, even if you weren't exposed to some of them. (Hmmm, does that make sense? I know what I mean, but putting it down on paper is difficult :))

In my opinion, our attitude AFTER a diagnosis has to be different to that before our diagnosis. The risk factors for PROMOTING b/c are different in a lot of instances to the risk factors for developing it in the first place.

I hope I haven't offended anyone.

Much love,
Janet.
xx

[Merridith]

Thanks for the info.

[Merridith]

Hi Angela: I found your information and the attached conversation about sugar and the relationship to cancer very interesting because of my lifestyle. Because I have lived a significant portion of my life in the remote far north of Canada, I have had limited access to grocery stores. As a result,I have had very low consumption of sugar over my lifetime (compared to most north americans). For instance, my lifetime total pop consumption is probably fewer than 100 cans. Because I have had limited access to stores I have almost never consumed any pre-processed foods (with their secret loads of sugar and salt) or consumed fast foods. I make almost everything from scratch and almost never consume white foods such as white flour, w. rice etc. This also includes food that I consumed in childhood as my parents basically grew everything that we ate including the meat. Yet this exceedingly puritan lifestyle hasn't saved me from the dreaded cancer that this site represents. Just an observation.