Cancer cells love sugar. This was recently confirmed in a new study published in the June issue of Cell.
When cancer cells and immune cells called T cells were placed in the same petri dish and given some glucose, the T cells no longer produced interferon gamma, an inflammatory compound important for fighting tumors and some kinds of infection. The cancer cells voraciously consumed the sugar, leaving none for the immune cells, which also require some sugar to function properly.
What if a ketogenic diet replaced our standard diet high in sugar and processed carbohydrates for cancer prevention and as part of a cancer treatment program? The ketogenic diet is high in protein and healthy fats but very low in carbs.
According to another recent study, the ketogenic diet forces a physiological shift in utilization from glucose to fatty acids and ketone bodies for energy. Normal healthy cells readily adapt to using ketone bodies for fuel, but cancer cells lack this metabolic flexibility, and thus die-off with limited glucose availability.
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