Dr.Mercola jm@lists.mercola.com

Breast Cancer Risks Grow With High-Carb Diets

Postmenopausal women who have used hormone replacement therapy (HRT) may want to steer their diets clear of high-carb foods that have a high glycemic index.

Uncovering the Link

High glycemic index diets typically incorporate a lot of sugars and refined starches and carbohydrates, which are responsible for a spike in blood glucose levels. Cornflakes, cheerios, and puffed wheat are a few examples of foods with high glycemic index.

In order to examine breast cancer risk in relation to overall glycemic index and dietary carbohydrate and sugar intake, researchers used data from a large group of some 50,000 women. Their dietary habits and other relevant information were surveyed between 1980 and 1985. During a 16-year follow-up period, researchers found:

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About 1,500 women developed breast cancer.

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Breast cancer risk was not related to glycemic index or sugar and total carbohydrate intake in the overall study population.

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In postmenopausal women, the risk of breast cancer was raised by 87 percent; high-carb diets reduced breast cancer risk by 22 percent in premenopausal women.

Moreover, researchers discovered the link between glycemic index and breast cancer risk in postmenopausal women was strengthened among those who reported sedentary behavior, had a history of HRT use, and were of normal weight.

The relationship between carbohydrate consumption and cancer is no secret, as I mentioned seven years ago.

Whenever you consider retooling your diet -- especially with the goal of preventing cancer and other forms of chronic disease -- one of the most important steps you can take is limiting your intake of sugar and grains.

This study is important, as it further documents the relationship between high carbohydrate intake and cancer. However, I disagree with their emphasis that glycemic index ratings are a good way to determine what foods you should avoid and, in turn, what foods are OK to consume.

The glycemic index (GI) tells you how quickly 50 grams of a particular food gets converted to glucose (blood sugar) after you ingest it, in comparison to white bread (GI 100).

I have found GI values to not be very useful, as they contain far, far too many exceptions to be consistently useful. A classic example is fructose, which has a very low glycemic index yet has been clearly established as a major reason why many people are overweight.

In terms of insulin and chronic disease prevention, you need to look much further than the glycemic index. Many foods like chocolate, cherries, and apple juice have low glycemic indices, but are still high in carbohydrates and can wreak havoc on your insulin levels.

Tips for Preventing Cancer

Eliminating grains and sugars from your diet will go a long way toward preventing cancer, but there are many other things to consider if you want to truly improve your chances of staying cancer-free.

1.

Control your insulin levels. Make certain that you limit your intake of processed foods and sugars as much as possible.

2.

Obtain appropriate amounts of animal-based omega-3 fats and make sure you use cod liver oil if you don't have regular access to sun exposure.

3.

Get appropriate exercise. One of the primary reasons exercise works is that it drives your insulin levels down. Controlling insulin levels is one of the most powerful ways to reduce your cancer risks.

4.

Normalize your vitamin D levels with safe amounts of sun exposure. This works primarily by optimizing your vitamin D levels. If you have regular access to sun exposure then you should use fish oil, not cod liver oil, as your primary source of omega-3 fats. Ideally, it would be best to monitor your vitamin D levels.

5.

Eat according to your metabolic type. The potent anti-cancer effects of this principle are very much underappreciated. When we treat cancer patients in our clinic this is one of the most powerful anti-cancer strategies we have.

6.

Have a tool to permanently erase the neurological short-circuiting that can activate cancer genes. Even the CDC states that 85 percent of disease is caused by emotions. It is likely that this factor may be more important than all the other physical ones listed here, so make sure this is addressed. Energy psychology seems to be one of the best approaches and my particular favorite tool, as you may know, is the Emotional Freedom Technique.

7.

Only 25 percent of people eat enough vegetables, so by all means eat as many vegetables as you are comfortable with. Ideally, they should be fresh and organic. However, please understand that, frequently, fresh conventionally grown vegetables are healthier than organic ones that are older and wilted in the grocery store. They are certainly better than no vegetables at all, so don't use that as an excuse. If you are a carb metabolic type you may need up to 300 percent more vegetables than a protein metabolic type.

8.

Make sure you are not in the two-thirds of the population who are overweight and maintain an ideal body weight.

9.

Get enough high-quality sleep.

10.

Reduce your exposure to environmental toxins like pesticides, household chemical cleaners, synthetic air fresheners and air pollution.

11.

Boil, poach or steam your foods, rather than frying or charbroiling them.