Is a high sugar, starchy carb diet hurting your pancreas and your health?

I was speaking to a friend yesterday and discussing this quandary:  we all know drinking too much harms your liver and taking drugs is detrimental to your brain and body’s organs.

But do we really understand how a high sugar and processed carb diet effects the pancreas?

I know I preach the importance of protein but there is a reason for this nag:  it calms down the sweet and sugar cravings and tells the brain it is okay without the sweet (besides increasing your metabolism and burning more calories in general).

If you eat a high sugar diet with desserts, chips and packaged processed foods on a regular basis what really happens?  Can it be all that bad?

Here’s the breakdown:

Beta-cells:  these are the ultra important cells in your pancreas that manufacture insulin and help you digest your food.

If you are eating a high sugar diet your beta cells are working on over-drive all the time, which wears them out, and eventually they start to die (sort of like your car transmition).  However, unlike an automobile you just can’t “replace” the beta cells.

Eating a high sugar diet on a daily basis wears out your pancreas just like alcohol eventually wears out your liver.

When a client comes to me with an elevated blood sugar and is on the brink of diabetes approximately 50% of the beta-cells of their pancreas are GONE.

Some new medications exist which can help regenerate the beta-cells but they are still in the early stages of research.  Changing your diet and exercise HELP immensely but why play with fire? 

Why get to the point where you have a 911 in your body?

Diabetes, pancreatic cancer and obesity is at all time high in America.  The message of adequate protein, good fats and eating whole real foods may seem like a broken record to many of you…but my heart keeps nagging me to help our nation with this health crisis before it’s too late and many of our loved ones are gone.

And remember – there is nothing sweeter than a good healthy body so spread the word.

Cancer and Carbohydrates?

Many years ago one of my clients brought me an article that discussed how carbohydrate intake is related to cancer.  This article peaked my interest and since that time I have followed research linking carbohydrates to incidence of cancer.

Research over the last few years has consistently linked high insulin levels to development of certain types of cancers and cancer reoccurrence.  A high glycemic carbohydrate diet can increase production of insulin, which in turn can increase cell growth of tumors in the body.  When insulin levels are high, tumor cells can get the food they need to divide and multiply.

What about pancreatic cancer?

A group of researchers examined the records of 89,000 women participating in the Nurses’ Health study in 2002.  They found that women of normal weight who ate large amounts of refined starches, such as white bread and potatoes, slightly increased their risk of pancreatic cancer. Women who were overweight, did not get a lot of exercise, and ate a lot of starchy foods were 2.5 times more likely to develop pancreatic cancer than if they ate other types of healthy carbohydrates.

One of the co-authors of the study, Charles S. Fuchs, discussed how replacing starchy foods that increase insulin levels with healthy carbohydrates from fruits and vegetables can improve your health by not only lowering risk of cancer, but diabetes and cardiovascular disease as well.

What does this study show us?  Although cancer does exist for multiple reasons one possible cause is consuming refined starchy carbs. Continually eating these types of foods makes the pancreas work harder to produce more insulin.  Besides increasing storage of fat, increased levels of insulin can stimulate tumors to grow.

Take home message?  Eat your carbohydrates from whole real foods – fruits, vegetables, nuts/seeds, and avocados.  If you eat starches, eat limited amounts and stick to brown or wild rice, quinoa, buckwheat and other truly whole grains. 

Obesity, Insulin Levels and Cancer?

Last week’s LA Times article on Obesity’s Role in Cancer was timely.  We know excess weight is critical in the development of diabetes and heart disease.  But now a correlation between increased weight and cancer?

About ten years’ back one of my clients brought in an article linking high insulin levels to cancer.  Since one of my specialties is diabetes I follow all the research on diet affecting insulin levels.  Now cancer was in the mix as well?

Research over the last few years has linked high insulin levels to development of certain types of cancers and its reoccurrence.  A diet high in processed carbohydrates increases production of insulin, which in turn can increase cell growth of tumors in the body.  When insulin levels are high, tumor cells are fed, thus dividing and multiplying.

So is there a connection between carbohydrates and cancer?  Hmm…let me rethink that plate of pasta.

A group of researchers examined the records of 89,000 women participating in the Nurses’ Health study in 2002.  The women who were overweight, did not get much exercise, and ate a lot of starchy foods were 2.5 times more likely to develop pancreatic cancer than those who ate healthy carbohydrates.

One of the co-authors of the study, Charles S. Fuchs, discussed how replacing starchy foods that increase insulin levels with healthy carbohydrates from fruits and vegetables can improve your health by not only lowering risk of cancer, but diabetes and cardiovascular disease as well.

In 2007, a major report called Food, Nutrition, Physical Activity, and the Prevention of Cancer:  A Global Perspective was published linking cancer to diet, physical activity, and weight.  The most profound finding of the report linked excess body fat to six types of cancer, including colon, kidney, pancreas, and adenocarcinoma of the esophagus and endometrium and post-menopausal breast cancer. 

So let’s break it down.  Excess weight and eating starchy carbs increase insulin levels which can increase growth of tumors and cancer risk.  Our romance with the taste and feel of comfort food - starchy carbohydrates - may not be achieving the health we so desire. 

To keep your insulin levels normal try eating some protein at each meal or snack along with a healthy source of carbohydrate like fruits, veggies, nuts/seeds, and add some healthy fats.  I’ve recently used spaghetti squash in place of pasta with meatballs and it was a pleasant surprise.

Imagine a salad with greens, goat cheese, pine nuts, avocado, tomatoes and some extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar.  Healthy CAN be tasty and enjoyable AND help you prevent cancer!

Harvard researcher Walter Willett, M.D. states “Obesity is approaching smoking as a cancer risk.”  Perhaps now is the time to tackle the problem of food with the same vengeance as the anti-smoking campaigns.  Remember it’s prevention, not prescription.