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Pia Garcia, Contributor

June 23, 2011

New Study: A low-carb diet may reduce your risk of cancer

Can a change of eating habits really lower the risk of getting cancer? Research suggests it could be possible. By Pia Garcia

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A new study published in a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) suggests that a diet that is low in carbohydrates and high in protein may "reduce the risk of cancer and slow the growth of tumors already present."

According to Gerald Krystal, PhD, a scientist with the British Columbia Cancer Research Center, the results show that a change in diet can directly impact our susceptibility to cancer. And while the study was conducted in mice, the evidence is strong enough that similar effects on humans may be considered.

George Pendergast, PhD, editor-in-chief of Cancer Research, the journal that published the study, agrees and says that this gives patients one more reason to change their eating habits. He says, "Many cancer patients are interested in making changes in areas that they can control, and this study definitely lends credence to the idea that a change in diet can be beneficial."

In the study, researchers found that tumors grew more slowly in mice that were given a diet that consisted of about 15 percent carbohydrates, compared to mice that had a diet that consisted of 55 percent carbohydrates.

Apart from lowering the risk of cancer, a low-carb, high-protein diet "has the potential to boost the ability of the immune system to kill cancer cells and prevent obesity."

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