Processed Food Linked With Increased Cancer Risk

Processed food may cause increased cancer risk according to new research published in the BMJ. The research indicates that people consuming high amounts of ultra-processed food also tend to be obese or overweight.

Studies into people consuming more processed food and increased cancer risk, also found they are more at risk of heart and circulation problems. Eating a lot of processed meat such as hot dogs has also been linked with an increased risk of colorectal cancer.

The study looked into 24 hour dietary records of nearly 105,000 adults in the NutriNet-Sante cohort, a general population in France. Individuals recorded what they ate from a list of 3,300 food items categorised by how processed they were, using a system known as NOVA.

The Statistics On Diet And Increased Cancer Risk

Scientists discovered that a 10% increase in the proportion of ultra-processed foods in the diet, is also associated with a significant increase greater than 10% in overall risks for breast cancer and general cancer.

People eating more processed foods were also more likely to smoke and exercise less. The authors controlled for these issues and still found an elevated cancer risk.

The results surprised researchers and the authors are greatly concerned by the analysis –  even when they adjusted the findings for many co-founding factors.

The authors even made statistical adjustments to accommodate for some of the study. They also acknowledged that their approach of categorising dietary patterns on industrially processed food in relation to disease risk is novel. Yet they also understood it needs refining before this can be given as practical dietary advice.

 

Your Diet Can Cause Increased Cancer Risk

It’s common knowledge that processed ‘junk’ foods are bad for health and recent research shows they are even as addictive as drugs. Yet many people do not realise the true extent or damage that high sugar, high-fat, starchy and dairy based food products can cause in the body.

Along with increasing LDL (bad) while lowering HDL (good) cholesterol, junk food can increase the risk of Diabetes Type 2 and heart disease. As junk food is full of empty nutrients, it can also cause weight gain that leads to obesity.

While most food is processed to some degree, ultra-processed foods are usually much more high calorie, containing more sugar and sodium overall.

It’s obvious to avoid eating processed junk foods for best health, yet many people do not realise that even foods such as potatoes, rice, pasta, breads, breakfast cereals, crackers etc are all equally damaging to health due to the high level of starches and sugars they contain.

Consuming too much sugar can lead to insulin spikes in the bloodstream and over time, the more insulin spikes cause the body’s normal insulin response to falter. This increases the risk of weight gain, insulin resistance and Type 2 Diabetes. All of this has an impact on the body and on cellular health too.

As many processed foods are acidic forming, this can deprive blood cells of oxygen and eventually they can become cancerous. 

 

The Foods You Should Be Eating To Lower Cancer Risk

To maintain good cell health, you need to achieve alkaline balance in the body. Alkaline cells are healthy cells, while acidity in the cells is considered a contributing factor to diseases such as cancer.

Choosing to eat healthy foods means enjoying dark leafy greens: kale, spinach, broccoli, cucumber, courgette, along with colourful vegetables like carrots, tomatoes, etc. It’s also recommended to boost your consumption of vegetables to 5-10 servings per day.

Eating 3-5 portions of dark-skinned, low sugar-fruits such as blueberries and blackberries is also a good idea. While consuming at least 5 portions of nuts, seeds or beans each day is recommended.

If you choose to eat fish, only eat wild caught, oily fish such as Alaskan salmon, sardines or black cod/sablefish as these are all high in Omega-3 fatty acids.

Avoiding an increased cancer risk is possible when you follow the diet and lifestyle recommendations laid out in the Cancer ebook and health plan for best results.

 

Recommended Reading

Cancer Cell Rehabilitation in 30 Days by Robert Redfern – Find out how to improve cell health by following a naturally healthy diet and lifestyle, along with taking the recommended nutrients in the Cancer Cell Rehab plan for best results. Available from Naturally Healthy News.