Dear friend, dear friend,
Sugar consumption per capita per year in France is 35 kg(1).
This figure has been stable since the 1990s.
It was 45 kg per year per person in the 1960s(2).
There has been a real increase in sugar consumption since the mid-20th century(2).
In 1850, sugar consumption was around 3.5 kg or 5 kg per capita per year.
There are sometimes debates on this point.
Some say that the figures we have for the 19th century are those of production and sugar available on the market and not of consumption(3).
The distinction is worth making.
But there is still a correlation between the sugar available and the sugar consumed.
One thing is certain: the amount of sugar consumed skyrocketed in the first part of the 20th century, then fell slightly and has now stagnated.
A short world tour of sugar consumption
Even though sugar consumption has increased in France over the decades, other countries around the world have much higher consumption.
For example, in Singapore we consume 85 kg of sugar per year and per inhabitant.(2).
In Costa Rica, this figure is 51 kg and in New Zealand 48 kg.
In the United States, consumption is similar to that of France: 35 kg per year and per capita with large disparities depending on the population(4).
Cancer cells prefer sugar
If sugar is of such interest to nutritionists and health agencies, it is because it has a direct effect on health.
Sugar affects metabolism.
It also has an effect on cancer.
Sugar increases the risk of contracting the disease and promotes its development if it is there(5).
This is linked to the cancer cell’s metabolism, which prefers to feed on sugar rather than oxygen, unlike healthy cells.
This is called glycolytic metabolism.
It concerns nearly 80% of cancers(5).
In these cases, cancer cells consume 100 times more than healthy cells!
The Warburg effect
This mechanism is called the Warburg effect after the name of the person who discovered it in the 1920s.(5).
Otto Heinrich Warburg is a German scientist born in 1883 in Freiburg im Breisgau(6).
He studied chemistry in Berlin, then medicine in Heidelberg, one of the most prestigious universities in Germany.
In 1918, he became a professor at the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute in Berlin, then director of the department of cell physiology of this institution.
He studied in detail the metabolism of cells and enzymes.
He published work on cellular respiration which earned him the Nobel Prize in Medicine (Physiology) in 1931.
For him, the fact that cancer cells feed mainly on sugar makes them less able to grow in an environment that lacks it.(6).
Link between sugar and cancer confirmed
The link between cancer and sugar consumption has been confirmed many times.
In the United States, a study conducted between 1991 and 2013, involving 3,184 people aged 26 to 84, confirmed the very clear correlation between regular sugar consumption and the risk of cancer.(7).
This work shows in particular that those who regularly consume sugary drinks have an increased risk of developing cancer.(7).
Clearly, sodas and fruit juices should be avoided as much as possible. Alcohol should be limited and consumed during meals (especially red wine).
Another study, a little older, carried out in Sweden on 60,000 women, indicates that those who consume a lot of carbohydrates, that is to say pasta, white bread, refined cereals, pizzas ( etc.) have a higher risk of developing breast cancer(8).
Finally, a review of the literature analyzing 37 studies and published in August 2018 confirms previous work, in particular on the danger posed by sugary drinks.(9).
All these publications indicate that the excessive consumption of sugary drinks, but also of starchy foods plays on certain metabolic factors such as inflammation or the regulation of blood sugar, which favor the appearance of certain cancers.(5).
Sugar and glycemic index
Otto Warburg’s discoveries and his Nobel Prize in the 1930s had no immediate effect on people’s sugar consumption.
Even after the Second World and the 1970s, the focus shifted more to cholesterol and fat than sugar.
We now know that cholesterol is no longer really a problem.
Various doctors and researchers, including Michel de Lorgeril, researcher at the CNRS and expert in cardiology, have shown that what counts is the lifestyle and the type of diet.(10).
Since then, nutritionists and public health agencies have taken a greater interest in sugar.
And some manufacturers have made efforts to reduce the sugar level in their product(1).
The trouble is that once again, we’re not really looking in the right place.
Admittedly, sugar consumption is a problem.
But the real challenge is to succeed in adopting a diet that does not play too much on glycemia, that is to say the level of sugar in the blood.
In other words, the most important thing for the metabolism is to have a blood sugar level that is as stable as possible despite the different meals taken during the day and stress peaks.
The presence of sugar in the body is an element of the diagnosis
Scientists, Inspired by the Warburg Effect, Invented the PET Scan, a Test to Diagnose Cancer(11).
The patient is injected with a contrast agent.
This is often fluorodeoxyglucose(12).
This substance makes it possible to show on medical imaging where the areas of sugar concentration are in the body.
The areas where the sugar accumulates shine on the screen. They are fluorescent.
This gives doctors a pretty clear indication of a cancer risk.
How to limit the risk associated with sugar?
The best way to regulate your blood sugar is adopt a protective lifestyle.
This goes through :
- regular physical activity,
- times of relaxation, play, breathing, singing, etc. which will reduce stress and work the vagus nerve;
- the consumption of green vegetables at all meals;
- the consumption of fresh quality products that are processed as little as possible. ;
- adopting a Mediterranean or Okinawan diet;
- sufficient hydration;
- peaceful sleep;
- etc.
The advantage of these daily measures is that they will bring you many health benefits that go far beyond the prevention of cancer.
Naturally yours,
Augustine of Livois