Nutrition and Cancer: Foods That Can Help or Harm

September 4th, 2024 | Cancer

It may seem like cancer is a luck-of-the-draw type thing, where you can’t control your likelihood of developing it. However, there are several lifestyle factors that can impact your risk of getting cancer, one of which being food. We can use food as a tool to actively prevent cancer. However, there are also some types of food that can increase your risk of cancer. Let’s review some of the main foods that increase or decrease your cancer risk.

Foods that reduce cancer risk

Fruits and vegetables

Studies show that people with diets packed with fruits and vegetables have lower incidences of cancer in the mouth, stomach, lung, esophagus, colon, pancreas, prostate, and more. This type of diet can also lower your risk of heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and high blood pressure (1).

Whole grains.

Whole grain products are foods like whole wheat pasta, brown rice, oats, and wholegrain bread that are produced from the entire grain. This is different from eating refined grains, which includes things like white bread, rice, and pasta. Whole grains are packed with fiber, which is essential to lowering your risk of cancer, specifically bowel cancer (2).

Healthy fats

Some may attribute fats to being unhealthy, but there are certain fats that are actually protective against cancer. Healthy fats, like fish, olive oil, nuts, seeds, and avocado, can actually lower your risk of cancer! However, trans and saturated fats, also known as “unhealthy fats” can increase your risk of cancer and other diseases and thus should be avoided or eaten in moderation (3).

Foods that can increase cancer risk

Processed meats

Research has shown that consuming processed meat is linked to colorectal cancer. In fact, one study concluded that as many as 34,000 cancer deaths per year globally can be attributed to diets that have high processed meat intake. Thus, if you are a lover of processed meat, it’s best to only eat it in moderation to lower your risk of cancer (4).

Sugary foods and beverages

The reality is that our bodies need glucose, or sugar, to function. However, consuming too much sugar can increase your likelihood of cancer growing or spreading. High blood sugar levels are also linked to obesity and high insulin levels, which both significantly increase your risk of cancer. Thus, it’s best to opt for high-quality, complex carbohydrates and limit your carbohydrate intake to just ¼ of your plate (5).

Alcohol

Research indicates that drinking more than three alcoholic drinks daily can increase your risk of pancreatic and stomach cancers (6).

References

1. https://progressreport.cancer.gov/prevention/diet_alcohol/fruit_vegetable#:~:text=People%20whose%20diets%20are%20rich,colon%2C%20pancreas%2C%20and%20prostate.
2. https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/causes-of-cancer/diet-and-cancer/wholegrains-fibre-and-cancer-risk
3. https://www.mdanderson.org/publications/focused-on-health/FOH-dietary-fats.h15-1589835.html
4. https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/cancer-carcinogenicity-of-the-consumption-of-red-meat-and-processed-meat
5. https://osher.ucsf.edu/patient-care/integrative-medicine-resources/cancer-and-nutrition/faq/sugar-and-cancer
6. https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/risk-factors/alcohol.html