Cancer and Carbohydrates?

Many years ago one of my clients brought me an article that discussed how carbohydrate intake is related to cancer.  This article peaked my interest and since that time I have followed research linking carbohydrates to incidence of cancer.

Research over the last few years has consistently linked high insulin levels to development of certain types of cancers and cancer reoccurrence.  A high glycemic carbohydrate diet can increase production of insulin, which in turn can increase cell growth of tumors in the body.  When insulin levels are high, tumor cells can get the food they need to divide and multiply.

What about pancreatic cancer?

A group of researchers examined the records of 89,000 women participating in the Nurses’ Health study in 2002.  They found that women of normal weight who ate large amounts of refined starches, such as white bread and potatoes, slightly increased their risk of pancreatic cancer. Women who were overweight, did not get a lot of exercise, and ate a lot of starchy foods were 2.5 times more likely to develop pancreatic cancer than if they ate other types of healthy carbohydrates.

One of the co-authors of the study, Charles S. Fuchs, discussed how replacing starchy foods that increase insulin levels with healthy carbohydrates from fruits and vegetables can improve your health by not only lowering risk of cancer, but diabetes and cardiovascular disease as well.

What does this study show us?  Although cancer does exist for multiple reasons one possible cause is consuming refined starchy carbs. Continually eating these types of foods makes the pancreas work harder to produce more insulin.  Besides increasing storage of fat, increased levels of insulin can stimulate tumors to grow.

Take home message?  Eat your carbohydrates from whole real foods – fruits, vegetables, nuts/seeds, and avocados.  If you eat starches, eat limited amounts and stick to brown or wild rice, quinoa, buckwheat and other truly whole grains. 

Alternatives for Starches

One of the most frequent questions I get asked is “what can I substitute for starchy carbs that tastes good?’

Mother Nature has provided us with natural alternatives to starches packed with nutrients and natural carbohydrates that don’t raise insulin levels and keep blood sugars on a more even keel.  These sustitutions are great for individuals who have diabetes or just want to keep their carbs under control.

What are a few you can incorporate into your diet?

1.  Spaghetti Squash - this yellow squash is easy to prepare and substitutes nicely for pasta.  Cut in half, scoop out the seeds and dot with some organic butter, and your favorite spice.  Cook in the oven at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes or until tender.  Remove from the oven and use a fork to scoop out the “spaghetti.”  Sprinkle with some parmesan cheese and enjoy with your favorite protein or some meatballs and tomato sauce.

2.  Eggplant - this squash is underused and tastes great as a substitute for noodles in lasagna or in any vegetable dish.  Slice the eggplant in medallions and put in the oven at 300 degrees for ½ hour to remove the water and use as the layers for lasagna.  See High Protein Lasagna for more ideas.  Eggplant can also be diced and sautéed with Indian spices for a meaty like side dish.

3.  Portobello Mushrooms – these mushrooms have multiple uses.  A few years back a study tested the satiety level of participants after eating Portobello mushrooms versus a piece of meat and the results were surprisingly similar.  They both provided a high satiety level.  Portobello mushrooms can but used as a pizza crust (scoop out insides and bake slightly before adding pizza toppings) or a holder for any protein dish or hearty vegetable side.

4.  Butternut or Acorn Squash – these two squashes make great substitutions for potatoes and are packed with phytochemicals and nutrients.  Cut them in half, scoop out the seeds, and bake in the oven with dots of organic butter, cinnamon or nutmeg. Enjoy cut in chunks or mashed.

All these vegetables are hearty, satisfying and filled with nutrients your body needs.  Stepping outside the box may be a bit daring but eventually becomes routine and ultimately increases your health.

Protein Lessons Learned from the Womb

This is the second entry regarding the conference I recently attended on what can shape your future before you were born.

One fascinating tidbit was the research on protein intake of pregnant women.  Before we talk about the results here’s a few quick physiology lesson.

Your pancreas is the organ which produces a hormone called insulin.  Insulin is essential to life since it allows all the cells of your body to be “fed.”  Inside the pancreas are critical cells called beta cells which produce the insulin.

If your beta cells start to die off you become a high risk for diabetes.  Research showed that when pregnant women ate a low protein diet the number of beta cells decreased.

One take home message for pregnant women is the importance of protein intake throughout their pregnancies.  For the majority of us this information can show us the importance of protein on a daily basis.

Not only is protein critical during pregnancy to maintain beta-cells, but during your lifespan eating protein throughout the day can keep your blood sugars even keeled and possibly keep your beta cells alive and well.

Easy sources of protein are eggs, cottage cheese, lean red meat, poultry, fish, nuts/seeds, nut butters, plain yogurt, low fat milk, and cheese.  Eating protein is an easy change to avoiding diabetes – and nothing lost - but gaining important cells to help your sugars.

Obesity, Insulin Levels and Cancer?

Last week’s LA Times article on Obesity’s Role in Cancer was timely.  We know excess weight is critical in the development of diabetes and heart disease.  But now a correlation between increased weight and cancer?

About ten years’ back one of my clients brought in an article linking high insulin levels to cancer.  Since one of my specialties is diabetes I follow all the research on diet affecting insulin levels.  Now cancer was in the mix as well?

Research over the last few years has linked high insulin levels to development of certain types of cancers and its reoccurrence.  A diet high in processed carbohydrates increases production of insulin, which in turn can increase cell growth of tumors in the body.  When insulin levels are high, tumor cells are fed, thus dividing and multiplying.

So is there a connection between carbohydrates and cancer?  Hmm…let me rethink that plate of pasta.

A group of researchers examined the records of 89,000 women participating in the Nurses’ Health study in 2002.  The women who were overweight, did not get much exercise, and ate a lot of starchy foods were 2.5 times more likely to develop pancreatic cancer than those who ate healthy carbohydrates.

One of the co-authors of the study, Charles S. Fuchs, discussed how replacing starchy foods that increase insulin levels with healthy carbohydrates from fruits and vegetables can improve your health by not only lowering risk of cancer, but diabetes and cardiovascular disease as well.

In 2007, a major report called Food, Nutrition, Physical Activity, and the Prevention of Cancer:  A Global Perspective was published linking cancer to diet, physical activity, and weight.  The most profound finding of the report linked excess body fat to six types of cancer, including colon, kidney, pancreas, and adenocarcinoma of the esophagus and endometrium and post-menopausal breast cancer. 

So let’s break it down.  Excess weight and eating starchy carbs increase insulin levels which can increase growth of tumors and cancer risk.  Our romance with the taste and feel of comfort food - starchy carbohydrates - may not be achieving the health we so desire. 

To keep your insulin levels normal try eating some protein at each meal or snack along with a healthy source of carbohydrate like fruits, veggies, nuts/seeds, and add some healthy fats.  I’ve recently used spaghetti squash in place of pasta with meatballs and it was a pleasant surprise.

Imagine a salad with greens, goat cheese, pine nuts, avocado, tomatoes and some extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar.  Healthy CAN be tasty and enjoyable AND help you prevent cancer!

Harvard researcher Walter Willett, M.D. states “Obesity is approaching smoking as a cancer risk.”  Perhaps now is the time to tackle the problem of food with the same vengeance as the anti-smoking campaigns.  Remember it’s prevention, not prescription.

Can you Have Diabetes without Knowing It?

Diabetes can be a slow silent killer and closer than you realize.  With one in three Americans insulin resistant and in the pre-diabetes range soon these people could be diabetic.

Double the amount of people in the US getting cancer and swine flu combined have diabetes, yet many are not even aware of the risk or take it seriously.  Diabetes is a serious disease with multiple complications, yet can so easily be prevented and or controlled with simple lifestyle management.

So where do we begin?  I am going to take a few blogs to answer questions and invite those reading to ask questions they may have regarding nutritional diabetes management.

If you have a parent with diabetes you have the gene and are at a much higher risk that those without a family history and/or have a poor lifestyle.  In general it is a good idea to have your doctor monitor your fasting blood glucose level (sugar taken prior to your am meal).  This number should be less than 95.  If you find your fasting blood sugars rising over several years you are slowly becoming diabetic.  Fasting numbers in the 100-115 range are considered pre-diabetic.  What are other measures to check if you suspect you are diabetic?

Glycosylated hemoglobin A1C – a fancy name for what your blood sugar averaged over the last 3 months - can be easily measured with a regular blood test. That number should be less than 6.0.  Many times patients will come to me stating they have pre-diabetes or a few higher blood sugars when indeed they are diabetic.  Once this number is over 6.0 you are technically diabetic.  Another way to diagnosis diabetes is to test your blood sugars 2 hours after a meal.  If that number is over 126 on more than 2 occasions then you are diabetic, according to the American Diabetes Association guidelines.

If you want to get more technical then have 2 other tests done- a fasting insulin level and c-peptide.  Both these measures can become elevated before the A1C rises and measure how hard your pancreas is working to achieve a normal blood sugar level.  The fasting insulin should be less than 10 and the c-peptide should be less than 4.0.  Normal ranges for some laboratories may slightly differ from these numbers.

Have these laboratory tests measured annually with a physical exam to keep track to prevent a possible surprise diagnosis.  Taking control of your health may mean you need to monitor these levels yourself since they may be in range, and passed over by your physician who may be looking for flagged numbers.  Because a lab does not differentiate whether a “normal” glucose is fasting or non-fasting it is very possible to be diabetic and not be aware of it.  So yes, you can have diabetes and not know it sometimes for many years.

Tomorrow – Preventing Diabetes