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Glycemic Response & Cancer Risk Are Associated

Science News, presented by the Glycemic Research Institute®

Finding 1: Diets high in Glycemic Index (GI) and Glycemic Load (GL) may be associated with an increased risk of selected digestive tract and prostate cancers.

Finding 2: Diets high in Glycemic Index (GI) or Glycemic Load (GL) result in higher levels of blood glucose and insulin, which can promote glucose intolerance, insulin resistance and hyperinsulinemia [46].

SWEET FOODS WITH A HIGH GLYCEMIC INDEX INCREASE INSULIN & IGF & BREAST CANCER RISK

 

HIGH GLYCEMIC CANDY INCREASES BREAST CANCER RISK

There is a direct association between breast cancer risk and consumption of sweet foods with high glycemic index and load,

which increase insulin and insulin growth factors (IGF)

 

Increasing IGF in males (via dietary: high glycemic, insulinogenic foods/beverages) increases risk of prostate cancer.


Diets high in Glycemic Index (GI) or Glycemic Load (GL) result in higher levels of blood glucose and insulin


Insulin may affect cancer development by exerting mitogenic effects, directly and indirectly by affecting insulin-like growth factors (IGF) binding proteins (IGFBPs) and increasing the bioactivity of IGF-I [47].

 

Insulin and IGF-I also inhibit apoptosis [48]. Some, but not all, epidemiological studies [49, 50] showed that circulating levels of glucose, insulin and IGF-I or plasma C-peptide were positively associated with the risk of colorectal, breast, pancreas and prostate cancers [51–54].

 

A collaborative analysis of 17 prospective studies from 12 countries found that plasma concentrations of IGF-I were positively associated with breast cancer risk [55].

 

Four meta-analyses indicated that high circulating IGF-I concentrations were associated with the risk of premenopausal breast cancer, colorectal [56] and prostate cancers [56–58]. Another meta-analysis indicated that increased pre-diagnostic serum levels of insulin and glucose were related to the development of colorectal and pancreatic cancers [59].

 

Wang et al. (2009) reported that a high sucrose diet plays a role in intestinal epithelial cell proliferation and tumorigenesis [60], by increasing circulating levels of insulin and IGF-I.

                                                                              

Diabetes, a condition preceded by long-term hyperinsulinemia, has been associated with increased risk of colorectal, liver, pancreas, endometrium and perhaps postmenopausal breast cancers [61, 62].

 

The NECSS is a large population-based study from 8 of 10 Canadian provinces, based on a widely used and validated FFQ [14, 15]. The possibility bias cannot be excluded.

 

In conclusion, this investigation suggests that diets high in Glycemic Index (GI) and Glycemic Load (GL) may be associated with an increased risk of selected digestive tract and prostate cancers.


References:

Annals of Oncology

C. La Vecchia2,3, L.S. Augustin4, E. Negri2,M.deGroh1, H. Morrison1, L. Mery1 & the Canadian Cancer Registries Epidemiology Research Group† 1Science Integration Division, Centre for Chronic Disease Prevention and Control, Public Health Agency of Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada; 2Department of Epidemiology, Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche ‘Mario Negri’; 3Department of Clinical Sciences and Community Health, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy; 4Department of Nutritional Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada

 

Annals of Oncology is a multidisciplinary journal that publishes articles

addressing medical oncology, surgery, radiotherapy, pediatric oncology, etc.


See Additional References online

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