Can Diet and Lifestyle influence your Risk of getting Cancer? Let the Science Speak (2024)
Can diet, supplements and lifestyle influence cancer risk? Dive into 300+ research studies to find out.
Most of us know Steve Jobs, Chadwick Boseman (Black Panther), Robin Gibb (Bee Gees), Donna Summer, Farrah Fawcett, Eartha Kitt, Peter Jennings, Paul Newman, Patrick Swayze, Sydney Pollack, Michael Crichton, Bob Denver, Ted Kennedy, Jerry Orbach, Anne Bancroft, William Rehnquist, and Tony Snow, just to name a few. What do they have in common? They all died from 'cancer'.
Prevention holds greater value than both cure and early detection. Nonetheless, the incentive for profit often leans away from investing in preventive measures. This tendency is reflected in the limited coverage of preventative strategies within mainstream media channels.
Related: Top 10 Cancer Fighting Supplements
AACR Cancer Progress Report 2014 |
In This Article:
- What is Cancer?
- Cancer and nutrition
- Vitamins, minerals and supplements
- Vitamin D3 and K2
- Fish Oil (Omega-3 Fatty Acids)
- Vitamin C, E and Selenium
- Turmeric (Curcumin)
- Magnesium and Molecular Hydrogen
- Melatonin
- Green Tea (EGCG)
- Quercetin
- Garlic (Allicin) and Onion
- Coffee and Cancer
- Can antioxidant supplements help prevent cancer?
- Safety considerations for nutrition, supplements and cancer
- Quit smoking
- Diet and Physical Activity
- Fasting and Cancer
- Achieve and maintain a healthy weight throughout life
- Stay away from Carcinogens
- Reduce Stress
- Sleep
- Key Takeaways
What is Cancer?
Genetic changes that cause cancer can be inherited from our parents. They can also arise during a person’s lifetime as a result of errors that occur as cells divide or because of damage to DNA caused by certain environmental exposures. Cancer-causing environmental exposures include substances, such as the chemicals in tobacco smoke, and radiation, such as ultraviolet rays from the sun. As shown from the image below, environmental factors contribute up to 95% of cancers.
There are many types of cancer treatment. The types of treatment that you receive will depend on the type of cancer you have and how advanced it is. Surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy are the standard types of treatment for cancer. While your cancer specialist is focusing on staging your disease, the type of surgery, radiotherapy or chemotherapy, many people tend to lose focus on their nutrition. There is also a lot of confusion due to the overwhelming mixing of credible scientific information and marketing hypes available on the internet.
Cancer and Nutrition
Good nutrition is especially important if you have cancer because both the illness and its treatments can change the way you eat. They can also affect the way your body tolerates certain foods and uses nutrients.
During cancer treatment you might need to change your diet to help build up your strength and withstand the effects of the cancer and its treatment. This may mean eating things that aren’t normally recommended when you are in good health. For instance, you might need high-fat, high-calorie foods to keep up your weight, or thick, cool foods like ice cream or milk shakes because sores in your mouth and throat are making it hard to eat anything. The type of cancer, your treatment, and any side effects you have must be considered when trying to figure out the best ways to get the nutrition your body needs.
Therefore, nutrition is not an option or a desire but rather a basic necessity. That makes it all the more important reason to make nutrition as part of your overall strategy to fight the cancer battle. Do not give up. Many people with cancer have been cured or survived longer than those without cancer.
The following are the essential things you should know about nutrition and cancer.
Carbohydrates
Whole grains or foods made from them contain all the essential parts and naturally occurring nutrients of the entire grain seed. Whole grains are found in cereals, breads, flours, and crackers. Some whole grains, such as quinoa, brown rice, or barley, can be used as side dishes or part of an entree.
Fiber is the part of plant foods that the body cannot digest. There are 2 types of fiber. Insoluble fiber helps to move food waste out of the body quickly, and soluble fiber binds with water in the stool to help keep stool soft.
Other sources of carbohydrates include bread, potatoes, rice, spaghetti, pasta, cereals, corn, peas, and beans. Sweets (desserts, candy, and drinks with sugar) can supply carbohydrates, but provide very little in the way of vitamins, minerals, or phytonutrients.
This harmful "ultra-processed" food, as the researchers called it, may include packaged sweet pastries and muffins, chips, candy, sodas, frozen dinners like meatballs and fish sticks, instant ramen noodles, sugary cereals, and pretty much anything else you can imagine that's cheap and comes in a ready-to-go packet or container at the store.
Fats
Fats play an important role in nutrition. Fats and oils are made of fatty acids and serve as a rich source of energy for the body. The body breaks down fats and uses them to store energy, insulate body tissues, and transport some types of vitamins through the blood.You may have heard that some fats are better for you than others. Choose monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats more often than saturated fats or trans fats.
Monounsaturated fats are found mainly in vegetable oils like olive, canola, and peanut oils. Polyunsaturated fats are found mainly in vegetable oils like safflower, sunflower, corn, and flaxseed. They are also the main fats found in seafood.
Saturated fats are mainly found in animal sources like meat and poultry, whole or reduced-fat milk, cheese, and butter. Some vegetable oils like coconut, palm kernel oil, and palm oil are saturated. Trans-fatty acids are formed when vegetable oils are processed into margarine or shortening. Sources of trans fats include snack foods and baked goods made with partially hydrogenated vegetable oil or vegetable shortening. Trans fats also are found naturally in some animal products, like dairy products. Trans fats can raise bad cholesterol and lower good cholesterol; try to eliminate them from your diet.
Proteins
We need protein for growth, to repair body tissue, and to keep our immune systems healthy. When your body doesn’t get enough protein, it might break down muscle for the fuel it needs. This makes it take longer to recover from illness and can lower resistance to infection. People with cancer often need more protein than usual. After surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation therapy, extra protein is usually needed to heal tissues and help fight infection.Good sources of protein include fish, poultry, lean red meat, eggs, low-fat dairy products, nuts and nut butters, dried beans, peas and lentils, and soy foods.
Water
Water and liquids or fluids are vital to health. All body cells need water to function. If you do not take in enough fluids or if you lose fluids through vomiting or diarrhea, you can become dehydrated (your body doesn’t have as much fluid as it should). If this happens, the fluids and minerals that help keep your body working can become dangerously out of balance. You do get some water from the foods you eat, but a person should drink about eight 8-ounce glasses of liquid each day to be sure that all the body cells get the fluid they need. You may need extra fluids if you are vomiting or have diarrhea. Keep in mind that all liquids (soups, milk, even ice cream and gelatin) count toward your fluid goals.Vitamins, minerals and supplements
The body needs small amounts of vitamins and minerals to help it function properly. Most are found naturally in foods. Vitamins and minerals help the body use the energy (calories) found in foods.
A person who eats a balanced diet with enough calories and protein usually gets plenty of vitamins and minerals. But it can be hard to eat a balanced diet when you are being treated for cancer, especially if you have treatment side effects that last for a long time. In this case, your doctor or dietitian may suggest a daily multivitamin and mineral supplement.
If you are thinking of taking a vitamin or supplement, be sure to discuss this with your doctor first. Some people with cancer take large amounts of vitamins, minerals, and other dietary supplements to try to boost their immune system or even destroy cancer cells. Vitamins and minerals alone are not sufficient to fight cancer. Remember, nutrition is not about vitamins and minerals but there are other important elements (e.g. protein, water etc.) as well.
Clinical trials on vitamins and minerals are expensive and funding is difficult from the private sector. One high-profile example is the Selenium and Vitamin E Cancer Prevention (SELECT) trial of a decade ago, which cost US$114 million and demonstrated no meaningful benefit. Exacerbating the problem is the lack of a strong business model: drug companies have little incentive to invest in trials of a product that is cheap and widely available.
Some of these substances can be harmful, especially when taken in large doses. In fact, large doses of some vitamins and minerals may make chemotherapy and radiation therapy less effective.
1. Vitamin D3 and K2
2. Fish Oil (Omega-3 Fatty Acids)
3. Vitamin C and E
*Umbrella review: An umbrella review, or a review of reviews, is a systematic review that only considers other systematic reviews as an eligible study type for inclusion.
4. Turmeric (Curcumin)
5. Magnesium and Molecular Hydrogen
An analysis of the prospective, Swedish Mammography Cohort (JAMA 2005), evaluated 61,433 women aged 40 to 75 without a history of cancer for a mean follow-up of 14.8 years. The highest quintile of magnesium intake was associated with a significantly lower risk of CRC compared with the lowest quintile. This benefit was observed for both colon and rectal cancers.
A case-control study evaluated 2204 subjects from the Tennessee Colorectal Polyp Study (2007), which demonstrated that increasing total magnesium intake was significantly associated with decreasing risk of CR.. The highest tertile of dietary magnesium intake (>298 mg/day) was significantly associated with reduced risk of CRC in an age-adjusted model.
A study of 140,601 postmenopausal women from the Women’s Health Initiative (2015) with an mean follow-up of 13 years demonstrated a significant reduction in CRC risk with the highest quintile of total magnesium intake compared with the lowest quintile of magnesium intake. The benefit was driven by colon cancer, with a trend for rectal cancer.
Magnesium and Pancreatic Cancer
A study of 66,806 subjects aged 50 to 76 at baseline from the Vitamins and Lifestyle cohort (Nature 2015) evaluated magnesium intake and the incidence of pancreatic cancer during a mean follow-up of 6.8 years. Subjects with magnesium intake below the recommended dietary allowance were more likely to develop pancreatic cancer, particularly in those whose intake was less than 75% of the recommended dietary allowance. In this study, a 100 mg/day decrease in magnesium intake resulted in a 24% increase in risk of pancreatic cancer.
6. Melatonin
7. Green Tea (EGCG)
8. Quercetin
2022 - A paper published in August 2022 in Nutrition Research analyzed the pro-apoptotic effect that quercetin has on aging cells. The paper reviewed preclinical and early phase data using quercetin as a senolytic agent and found the data showed it was effective in “preventing or alleviating cancer formation.”
The authors reviewed the importance of cellular aging in the development of cancer cells and the effect that quercetin may have on the suppression of cancer cell proliferation.
Cellular senescence is a dynamic and multi-step process that is associated with alterations in metabolic activity and gene expression. This can compromise tissue regeneration and contribute to aging. On the other hand, by removing senescent cells, age-related dysfunction can be attenuated and potentially extend the lifespan.
9. Garlic (Allicin) and Onion
One study of 543,220 participants found that those who ate lots of Allium vegetables, such as garlic, onions, leeks and shallots, had a lower risk of stomach cancer than those who rarely consumed them (Source).
10. Coffee and Cancer
Can antioxidant supplements help prevent cancer?
Many observational studies, including case–control studies and cohort studies, have been conducted to investigate whether the use of dietary antioxidant supplements is associated with reduced risks of cancer in humans. Overall, these studies have yielded mixed results (Source). Because observational studies cannot adequately control for biases that might influence study outcomes, the results of any individual observational study must be viewed with caution.Randomized controlled clinical trials, however, lack most of the biases that limit the reliability of observational studies. Therefore, randomized trials are considered to provide the strongest and most reliable evidence of the benefit and/or harm of a health-related intervention. To date, nine randomized controlled trials of dietary antioxidant supplements for cancer prevention have been conducted worldwide. Many of the trials were sponsored by the National Cancer Institute.
Overall, these nine randomized controlled clinical trials did not provide evidence that dietary antioxidant supplements are beneficial in primary cancer prevention. In addition, a systematic review of the available evidence regarding the use of vitamin and mineral supplements for the prevention of chronic diseases, including cancer, conducted for the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) likewise found no clear evidence of benefit in preventing cancer (Source), published in 2013.
It is possible that the lack of benefit in clinical studies can be explained by differences in the effects of the tested antioxidants when they are consumed as purified chemicals as opposed to when they are consumed in foods, which contain complex mixtures of antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals (Source). Therefore, acquiring a more complete understanding of the antioxidant content of individual foods, how the various antioxidants and other substances in foods interact with one another, and factors that influence the uptake and distribution of food-derived antioxidants in the body are active areas of ongoing cancer prevention research.
If you want to take in more antioxidants, health experts recommend eating a variety of fruits and vegetables, which are good sources of antioxidants. Taking large doses of antioxidant supplements or vitamin-enhanced foods or liquids is usually not recommended while getting chemo or radiation therapy. Talk with your doctor to find out the best time to take antioxidant supplements.
Safety considerations for nutrition, supplements and cancer
Many people believe that if they find a pill or supplement in stores, it is safe and it works. Remember, a 'natural' product does not mean its a 'safe product. Some poisons are also natural but they are certainly not safe.The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) put out rules in 2007 to help ensure that supplements contain what their labels claim they do, but the supplement’s safety and its effects on the body are not addressed by any FDA rules. The FDA does not make manufacturers of these products print possible side effects on their labels. And the FDA cannot pull a dietary supplement or herbal product from the market unless it can prove that the product is unsafe. Stop taking the product and call your doctor right away if you have side effects, like wheezing, itching, numbness, or tingling in your limbs.
Tell your health care team about any over-the-counter products or supplements you are using or are thinking about using. Take the bottle(s) to your doctor to talk about the dose, and be sure that the ingredients do not interfere with your health or cancer treatments.
Quit smoking
Diet and Physical Activity
- Keep your weight within the healthy range, and avoid weight gain in adult life.
- Adults: Get 150-300 minutes of moderate intensity or 75-150 minutes of vigorous intensity activity each week (or a combination of these). Getting to or exceeding the upper limit of 300 minutes is ideal.
- Children and teens: Get at least 1 hour of moderate or vigorous intensity activity each day.
- Limit sedentary behavior such as sitting, lying down, watching TV, and other forms of screen-based entertainment.
- A healthy eating pattern includes:
- Foods that are high in nutrients in amounts that help you get to and stay at a healthy body weight
- A variety of vegetables – dark green, red and orange, fiber-rich legumes (beans and peas), and others
- Fruits, especially whole fruits in a variety of colors
- Whole grains
- A healthy eating pattern limits or does not include:
- Red and processed meats
- Sugar-sweetened beverages
- Highly processed foods and refined grain products
- People who do choose to drink alcohol should have no more than 1 drink per day for women or 2 drinks per day for men.
- Obesity and alcohol increase the risk of several types of cancer; these are the most important nutritional factors contributing to the total burden of cancer worldwide
- For colorectal cancer, processed meat increases risk and red meat probably increases risk; dietary fibre, dairy products, and calcium probably reduce risk
- Foods containing mutagens can cause cancer; certain types of salted fish cause nasopharyngeal cancer, and foods contaminated with aflatoxin cause liver cancer
- Fruits and vegetables are not clearly linked to cancer risk, although very low intakes might increase the risk for aerodigestive (airway and digestive tracts) and some other cancers.
“Compared with undertaking no resistance training, undertaking any amount of resistance training reduced the risk of all-cause mortality by 15% ... cardiovascular disease mortality by 19% ... and cancer mortality by 14% ...
A dose-response meta-analysis of 4 studies suggested a nonlinear relationship between resistance training and the risk of all-cause mortality. A maximum risk reduction of 27% was observed at around 60 minutes per week of resistance training ... Mortality risk reductions diminished at higher volumes.”
Weight Loss: Achieve and maintain a healthy weight throughout life
Physical activity counts too. Besides helping control weight, physical activity on its own might lower the risk of breast cancer and colon cancer.
Doing any amount of physical activity benefits health. But for the most benefit, strive for at least 150 minutes a week of moderate aerobic activity or 75 minutes a week of hard aerobic activity.
You can combine moderate and hard activity. As a general goal, include at least 30 minutes of physical activity in your daily routine. More is better.
The recommendations include the latest research on diet and physical activity, as well as policy and systems changes that reduce barriers to healthy living. The update focuses on increasing physical activity and developing healthy eating patterns at every age.
Fasting and Cancer
Fasting may help reduce obesity-associated cancers. “There’s a lot of obesity-associated cancers,” said Dr. Jason Fung, a nephrologist and fasting expert. “There’s about 13 cancers that are well accepted that they are associated with obesity; fasting might help decrease that.”Fasting can potentially starve cancer cells. When fasting, the body uses fats and produces ketones for energy. Cancer cells rely heavily on glucose, making them less efficient at using ketones.
Additionally, fasting reduces insulin levels. Elevated insulin levels are linked to an increased risk of breast, prostate, and colorectal cancers. Eating continuously can contribute to hyperinsulinemia.
Stay away from Carcinogens
Reduce Stress
Sleep
Many studies, especially in the last 10 years, have evaluated the association between different types of cancer and different types of sleep disorders (Mogavero 2021). The majority of sleep disorders in patients with cancer are associated with activation of the inflammatory response (Mogavero 2021).Key Takeaways
- Although this is a comprehensive guide, please do not consider this guide as personal medical advice, but as a recommendation for use with professional providers. Consult with your doctor and discuss with her/him.
- Our aim here isn't to replace your doctors' advice. It is intended as a sharing of knowledge and information. Do take note that most strategies are not 100% protective against cancer. It's a continuous struggle between the immune system and the cancer cells.
- Cancer prevention should be part of a multi-modal approach in order to provide the best possible outcome. The above Diet and lifestyle recommendations are proven methods to reduce your cancer risk. That said, there is no miracle diet or treatment that can prevent all cancers.
- You could also complement your research and read more from the American Cancer Society site. The site has comprehensive information on cancer. You could read more on cancer prevention by cancer type here: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/prevention
References:
- Top 10 Repurposed Drugs and Metabolic Interventions to Control Cancer: Evidence based (2024 Edition)
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