Tissue acidity is tightly regulated by our blood and brains, and cannot be altered by anything we consume – almost the only acidity diet can influence is that of urine.ĭeeply intertwined with this myth is the notion that certain foods “feed” cancer, with sugar typically listed as a culprit. Even if it could, there’s another wrong assumption here: that one can change tissue acidity or alkalinity through diet. This means that an alkaline diet can’t affect cancerous cells. Subsequent investigations showed that in fact the switch actually stems from the very mutations that give rise to cancer – basically, it’s a consequence of cancer rather than the cause. In 1924, Otto Warburg suggested this metabolic switch to glycolysis might drive cancer. This increased reliance of cancer cells on glucose even when there’s enough oxygen is known as the Warburg effect. This consumption of glucose (a process called glycolysis) results in acidic waste products, and consequently a higher acidity around cells which use this mechanism. The reason that acidity is seen as an issue is because while healthy cells get the majority of their energy from oxygen respiration, cancerous cells tend to inefficiently use glucose at a higher rate than healthy cells. Proponents of the diets believe that an acid diet encourages cancer formation, and that an alkaline diet is therefore the solution. The alkaline diet is one of the most popular “anti-cancer” diets. The promotion of “cancer-beating” diets has become especially prominent on social media in recent years. After all, a cancer diagnosis can be extremely frightening, and the thought of being able to take some personal control is comforting. The idea that one can directly influence cancer through something as simple as diet is an alluring one. Just over three years ago, I tackled six common cancer myths but as new myths arise and information moves on, it seemed a good idea to start the year off by debunking some new myths – as well as some that have refused to disappear.Ĭancer can be beaten or avoided with certain special diets
This can leave patients, friends and family confused and vulnerable to dodgy information at best, and ready to undergo dangerous “treatments” and “cures” at worst.
Given the sheer volume of information available on the internet and elsewhere it is often difficult to separate fact from fiction. Yet cancer is still widely misunderstood.
Cancer is a topic with high emotional resonance – there is hardly a family in the world that has not been touched by this complex family of diseases.