Belgian Researchers Discovered Link Between Sugar Consumption and Tumor Growth
After a nine year study, Belgian researchers discovered evidence that tumors anaerobically feed off of excess dietary sugar.
Scientists are still in the process of discovering how sugar fuels and grows cancer cells, or how the metabolization of sugars relates to tumor growth.
Sugar is a very generalized term. There are many forms of sugars, that would fit into the category of sugar. Table sugar, fructose, and other "healthy" sugars in excess can contribute and fuel tumor growth. Artificial sweeteners like Splenda, and natural zero calorie sweeteners like stevia and monk fruit would not be concidered "sugars."
The researchers discovered that unlike healthy cells, tumor cells process sugar through fermentation using the Anaerobic metabolic process. Anaerobic respiration does not require oxygen as a catalyst. Fungi use fermentation to process and digest sugars.
“Our research reveals how the hyperactive sugar consumption of cancerous cells leads to a vicious cycle of continued stimulation of cancer development and growth,” said Johan Thevelein, one of the researchers. These findings were published on (Oct. 13) in Nature Communications, after 9 years of extensive research.
Living systems use sugar to survive, whether that sugar is from fruits, vegetables, or bread. Our bodies use sugar to function, but tumor cells use sugar excessively, because the Anaerobic process is less efficient that the aerobic metabolic process. The byproduct of the Anaerobic cellular process is lactic acid. Lactic acid is also produced by your muscles when you participate in vigorous anaerobic activity.
There are no definitive directives at this point, but sources believe that it might not be a bad idea to limit consumption of sugars. It is likely that one day health professionals will start issuing diet plans for their cancer patients, and rely less heavily on chemotherapy and radiation therapy.
In the spirit of journalistic integrity, this author would like to note that most sources, including the government and the medical community, outright denied that sugar had any link to cancer.
It seems that this myth is no longer a myth but has been moved to the plausible category. Soon the sugar tumor link might become peer reviewed scientific fact, accepted by the main stream scientific community.
What do you think about this new discovery? Is this surprising news to you?
