Cancer Metastasis Linked to Sugar-binding Proteins

[Tenet Nosce]

How Cancer Cells Break Free from Tumors: Study Identifies Adhesion Molecules Key to Cancer’s Spread Through the Body

One pair of extracellular matrix molecules that metastatic tumors stuck to especially well was fibronectin and galectin-3, both made of proteins that contain or bind to sugars.

Perhaps it is finally time to rethink selling sugary snacks in order to "fight cancer". :idea: Juicing gurus might also want to rethink promoting massive amounts of fruit juice as a "cancer cure".

Also of note, the article of course suggests developing drugs that interfere with the sugar-binding proteins as a potential cancer treatment. Fair enough. But they didn't suggest the obvious- why not control blood sugar levels by limiting consumption of dietary sugar? And yes, that would include fruit sugar.

[Patrick]

...But they didn't suggest the obvious- why not control blood sugar levels by limiting consumption of dietary sugar? And yes, that would include fruit sugar.

If you want to control blood sugar levels, you have to limit all carbs and not just sugar. In fact you have to limit consumption of excess calories per se. The problem is not carbs, sugar or fats or whatever you eat. It's eating too much of it, otherwise you will just metabolize whatever you eat. But an excess is what causes havoc.

[Tenet Nosce]

If you want to control blood sugar levels, you have to limit all carbs and not just sugar. In fact you have to limit consumption of excess calories per se. The problem is not carbs, sugar or fats or whatever you eat. It's eating too much of it, otherwise you will just metabolize whatever you eat. But an excess is what causes havoc.

Yes, that is true, what matters is the actual glycemic load of meals, which accounts for the total amount of calories consumed, as well as the glycemic index of the individual foods.

But when all is said and done, overeating by consuming an extra 200 calories of soda pop or fruit juice raises the blood sugar by much more than, say, an extra 200 calories of avocado.

So for all practical purposes, and considering the average American diet, limiting sugar is the right place to start. I recommend no more than 45 grams (3 tablespoons or 9 teaspoons) a day, and no more than 15 grams at a single time. That includes fruit sugar. And for reference, 1 cup of fruit or 1/2 cup of fruit juice has ~15 grams of sugar in it.

[Patrick]

The real problem with sugar as opposed to carbs per se, is that half of the calories can only be metabolized by the liver (the fructose). So an excess of calories in the form of soda is indeed much worst than the same excess in the form of pastas.

But still, without an excess all is well.

[Tenet Nosce]

But still, without an excess all is well.

Sure. As long as we are clear about what constitutes excess. And that would be anything over 4 ounces at one time. From a sugar standpoint, there is little difference between fruit juice and soda pop. From a nutritional standpoint, the fruit juice is obviously superior.

[Patrick]

I wish I could just get by with prana.

[abstrktion]

An interesting thread. Tenet--good to hear your view. I've really been trying to limit the sugar and the processed carbs.

I've been trying to take care of my diabetic mom--who just had a run of rather serious illnesses (UTI, sepsis, kidney failure, pancreaitis, liver dysfunction) that landed her in the hospital and nursing home over the past month, and we're trying to figure out what she CAN eat--she also has neuropathy and possibly some gout, or at least some issues with swelling in the ankles. She's also about 100 pounds overweight (yes, I know that isn't surprising). What is surprising is that her high blood pressure seems to have gone away with only a 30 pound weight loss.

If anyone has ideas, please share. Everything seems to have resolved itself (the human body is amazing) except the UTI and the diabetes; she's had type 2 diabetes for years. Our problems have been that some of the diets seem to contract each other.

Anyways, any thoughts on health and diet are interesting to me.

Thanks!

[Patrick]

...Anyways, any thoughts on health and diet are interesting to me.

Thanks!

That's an unbelievably large subject.

I believe that a diet close to Dr Kwasniewski's Optimal Nutrition would be very helpful for her. (that's just my opinion and certainly not professional advice)

Here's a nice thread on the subject: http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=394793 (I know it's on a low-carb forum, but this diet is not low-carb)
(I even participated in that thread at the time )

[Tenet Nosce]

An interesting thread. Tenet--good to hear your view. I've really been trying to limit the sugar and the processed carbs.

I've been trying to take care of my diabetic mom--who just had a run of rather serious illnesses (UTI, sepsis, kidney failure, pancreaitis, liver dysfunction) that landed her in the hospital and nursing home over the past month, and we're trying to figure out what she CAN eat--she also has neuropathy and possibly some gout, or at least some issues with swelling in the ankles. She's also about 100 pounds overweight (yes, I know that isn't surprising). What is surprising is that her high blood pressure seems to have gone away with only a 30 pound weight loss.

If anyone has ideas, please share. Everything seems to have resolved itself (the human body is amazing) except the UTI and the diabetes; she's had type 2 diabetes for years. Our problems have been that some of the diets seem to contract each other.

Anyways, any thoughts on health and diet are interesting to me.

Thanks!

Hi abstrktion-

Personally, I would refrain from making any specific recommendations over the Internet, without having done a proper intake and evaluation of your mom. But here are some general thoughts which apply to pretty much everybody:

1. Clearly, sugar of all forms should be limited. In cases of diabetes, I tend to lower the bar even further, to no more than 30 grams a day.

2. Eliminate all forms of processed foods, which contain all manner of additives which might be impacting her hormones and detox function.

3. Severely limit grains: wheat, rice, and corn. For starches substitute squashes, beans, sweet potato, and other root vegetables.

4. Consume no less than 6 cups of vegetables a day, preferably organic.

5. Make sure to get adequate protein, but also not too much. About 1.0 grams of protein daily per kilogram body weight is a good rule-of-thumb.

6. Make judicious use of plant fats, such as are found in nuts, seeds, coconut, and avocado.

7. See if there is a naturopathic doctor in your area that has graduated from a nationally-accredited program. Be prepared to pay something out of pocket. After all- what could have more value than one's health?

Hope that helps!

[abstrktion]

An interesting thread. Tenet--good to hear your view. I've really been trying to limit the sugar and the processed carbs.

I've been trying to take care of my diabetic mom--who just had a run of rather serious illnesses (UTI, sepsis, kidney failure, pancreaitis, liver dysfunction) that landed her in the hospital and nursing home over the past month, and we're trying to figure out what she CAN eat--she also has neuropathy and possibly some gout, or at least some issues with swelling in the ankles. She's also about 100 pounds overweight (yes, I know that isn't surprising). What is surprising is that her high blood pressure seems to have gone away with only a 30 pound weight loss.

If anyone has ideas, please share. Everything seems to have resolved itself (the human body is amazing) except the UTI and the diabetes; she's had type 2 diabetes for years. Our problems have been that some of the diets seem to contract each other.

Anyways, any thoughts on health and diet are interesting to me.

Thanks!

Hi abstrktion-

Personally, I would refrain from making any specific recommendations over the Internet, without having done a proper intake and evaluation of your mom. But here are some general thoughts which apply to pretty much everybody:

1. Clearly, sugar of all forms should be limited. In cases of diabetes, I tend to lower the bar even further, to no more than 30 grams a day.

2. Eliminate all forms of processed foods, which contain all manner of additives which might be impacting her hormones and detox function.

3. Severely limit grains: wheat, rice, and corn. For starches substitute squashes, beans, sweet potato, and other root vegetables.

4. Consume no less than 6 cups of vegetables a day, preferably organic.

5. Make sure to get adequate protein, but also not too much. About 1.0 grams of protein daily per kilogram body weight is a good rule-of-thumb.

6. Make judicious use of plant fats, such as are found in nuts, seeds, coconut, and avocado.

7. See if there is a naturopathic doctor in your area that has graduated from a nationally-accredited program. Be prepared to pay something out of pocket. After all- what could have more value than one's health?

Hope that helps!

Thank you so much. She seems to have lost the ability to digest raw veggies--have you come across something like this? Strangely enough, my mother in law can't eat them either--and she's allergic to fruit (very weird, but she always has been). Is this common?

[Tenet Nosce]

Thank you so much. She seems to have lost the ability to digest raw veggies--have you come across something like this? Strangely enough, my mother in law can't eat them either--and she's allergic to fruit (very weird, but she always has been). Is this common?

You're welcome. A fair amount of people have trouble digesting raw veggies. Possible reasons include reduced output of pancreatic digestive enzymes and very low levels of symbiotic gut bacteria. Either of these is has the potential to be rather hazardous to one's health, so simply not eating vegetables isn't a particularly good solution.

Allergies are food-specific. That is to say it isn't really possible to be allergic to fruit "in general". However, there is something called fructose intolerance which might be going on.

Hard to say without doing the proper tests. I would really recommend seeking out a professional in your area that knows how to deal with these things. Of course- your mom would need to be on board with the idea or it isn't likely to be of much help.

[norral]

alpha lipoic acid will help with the neuropathy. i would start at 300 mg a day and work slowly up to 1200 mg a day. vitacost.com has the product and good prices and good quality. also benfotiamine 150 mg a day will help protect against diabetes side effects. also nattokinase 2000 units one a day is good for circulation. before taking these though i would go to a naturopath and let him give u a program and then u could bring these supplements up to him when discussing treatment. without testing supplements can be dangerous and i wouldnt want your mom just taking something without running it thru a medical professional. the alpha lipoic acid is pretty benign i have never heard of a side effect with that but still please i am not a doctor please run it thru a naturopath before starting any supplements suggested by anyone because supplements also interact with the medication she is taking . god bless

norral

also one other supplement i forgot that i would recommend is 100 mg of vitamin b6 daily . kal makes a b6 b12 folic acid lozenge which is take.