New research, presented at the world's largest cancer conference, revealed that consuming a lot of sugar without eating fiber causes the intestines to produce bacteria that accelerate the aging of human cells, which increases the risk of cancer.
The researchers, who attended the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) in Chicago this week, said they are one step closer to understanding the role of food consumed in cancer risk.
The Ohio State University team studied genetic samples from people under 50 and older people with colon cancer.
They found that younger patients on a low-fiber, high-sugar diet produce bacteria called Fusobacterium, which increase inflammation in the intestines by binding to pro-inflammatory proteins.
In turn, fiber slows the release of glucose into the blood (blood sugar) and feeds healthy gut bacteria that reduce inflammation.
It has been shown that constant inflammation leads to cell aging, and researchers have estimated that regular poor diets in young colorectal cancer patients lead to their cells aging by about 15 years older than the person’s biological age.
Older cells are more susceptible to cancer because they are more damaged and more likely to acquire mutations that make them susceptible to disease.
Meanwhile, older patients with colon cancer had cells similar to their actual ages.
“These data suggest that pathogenic microbes may cause inflammation, leading to accelerated aging and increasing the risk of early colorectal cancer,” the researchers wrote.
The team noted that the findings are consistent with other recent data, suggesting that processed, low-fiber diets lead to an imbalance in the gut microbiome in a process called intestinal dysbiosis.
Meanwhile, a separate study at the conference uncovered theories that energy drinks could partly fuel the "colorectal cancer epidemic" in people under 50.
We must take care of what we eat.
ReplyDelete