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This week it’s impossible to miss the headlines that fructose causes breast and pancreatic cancer. But does this really mean we have to pour our OJ down the drain and compost our dried dates and raisins, vowing never to approach the fruit aisle at the supermarket again?
What all the reporting is leaving out is the reason why fructose is associated with cancer. The simple reason is that sugar isn’t just burned by cells. Sugar also becomes the backbone of DNA.
DNA is composed in part of incredibly long chains of ribose sugar. It’s easier for those cells to make ribose from fructose than it is for them to make it from any other source. However, the process is not automatic.
The conversion of fructose to pentose only occurs when there are also fluctuations in an enzyme called transketolase. This enzyme responds to excess sugar, not necessarily by fructose sugar. It’s not just the presence of fructose that triggers the production of large amounts of ribose. It’s also consuming too many carbs in general. There is a sudden enthusiasm for the more natural cane sugar, or sucrose, but it’s essential to remember that sucrose is a chemical combination of glucose and fructose. You don’t avoid fructose by eating cane sugar.
But what does all this have to do with cancer, anyway?
In the proliferation stage of cancer development, cancer cells need to make lots of DNA so they can divide to create lots of cancer cells. Fructose does not cause cancer. It does not really “fuel” cancer. It provides the raw materials for cancer cell (and healthy cell) DNA. If
you consume tiny amounts of fructose, you don’t trigger the massive production of ribose in cancer cells.
There is a difference, of course, between high-fructose corn syrup and fructose from fruit. “High” fructose isn’t 100% fructose. It’s also glucose, just in a different ratio than table sugar. The idea for using high-fructose corn syrup is that it doesn’t dry out the same way that cane sugar does, and it’s a nifty excuse for planting lots of corn, selling lots of seed and fertilizer and tractors, creating a new commodity for hedge funds, and so on. Eating no more than about 15 grams (3 spoons) up to twice a day won’t trigger the nasty reactions that accelerate cancer proliferation, and eating a single piece of fruit earlier in the day and another piece of fruit later in the day won’t, either.
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Dunking a dozen doughnuts, on the other hand, is practically a prescription for cancer growth. It’s just important to remember that with fructose as with everything else, stay within a healthy limit. And it’s probably best to avoid high-fructose corn syrup altogether, if only to send the hedge fund managers, GMO creators, and pesticide purveyors a lesson.
Robert Rister grew up in a farming family who raised 1,000 acres of cotton, sorghum, vegetables, and corn, in addition to maintaining an herb garden for four generations. Chemist, herbalist, and formulator of natural health products, Robert is the author or co-author over twenty books on natural health, including Healing without Medication and the forthcoming Coconut Grove Diet.
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What about raw foodists who consume large amounts of fruits?
Balance with greens and low fat intake are the keys. Find your balance and go with it.
Raw Foodists who eat a lot of fruits get the juice with fruit fibre. Due to the fibre, release of sugar into blood stream not as fast.
Raw fruit (and organic if you can get it) is one of THE healthiest things to eat. It contains essential vitamins and minerals (including fructose) that act in synergy to provide energy and boost the immune system. Eating fruit does not cause cancer. Eating loads of fruit does not cause cancer.
High Fructose Corn Syrup is a highly refined product that bears no resemblance to the original food from which it came. HFCS is a substance that should be avoided wherever possible as it contributes towards diabetes, heart disease and yes, cancer.
Raw fruits and vegetables are PROTECTIVE against cancer because they contain anti-oxidants and other phyto-nutrients that haven’t even yet been identified.
For anyone to suggest that fruit causes cancer one has to question the source of the comment/research and who funded the research.
It is clearly designed to confuse people about what is healthy to eat and what is not.
People like to hear good news about their bad habits but at the end of the day, the sensible advice prevails – eat your fruit and veg (raw wherever possible), steer clear of refined food in whatever form (this includes sugars and grains), minimise animal protein (replace with plant protein – nuts, seeds, leafy greens) and don’t be fooled into thinking you have to have dairy/meat for calcium/protein.
Right on Sarah. Everyones diet will differ in what ratios of what specific foods we eat, but fruit is a very important part of good health. And Greens incredibly important for a number of reasons.
too much fruit leaches minerals from the body
see Dr Mercola website and search for fructose in search box – he has lists showing fructose in different fruits in some of the fructose articles he wrote in 2010 and what amount HE recommends (not me)
That’s why greens are so important in a well rounded healthy diet.
I’m wondering about the kind of fructose that is abundant in Agave nectar and Xylitol. I always thought they were fairly “safe” sweeteners…. any comments?
Agave is not a good choice at all. It’s an adulterated product that does have a fairly low glycemic level, but reacts much like HFCS in the body.
I have also read agave is not a good choice, so why do heaps of raw food recipes have this in them??? And how can you substitute agave with something better for us in recipes so they still work and taste the same??
I entirely agree with not using Agave syrup (nectar) and have thrown mine out. Has anyone heard of “Sweet Freedom ” ? this is supposed to be an all natural sweetner made from 100% friut extract (Apples,grapes and carob).Xylitol will kill a cat or a dog very quickly even in small amounts so I will not have that in the house.I think that most things like fructose taken in moderation are safe and I do use “Sweet Freedom” as this seems to be as safe as you are likely to get these days.I would appreciate thoughts on this.Blessed be everyone.
The best natural sweetener is probably stevia…a small amount of unpasteurised honey or maple syrup do well too, or even better, a date soaked overnight and blended. I would avoid any processed sugar, xylitol, aspartame, etc. Each humanly transformed sugar or created sweetener can be harmful to our body.
What exactly is the deal on Xylitol….I was given the impression that it was a safe sugar substitute and have been using it in porridge,smoothies,and baking…..mon dieu!
Xylitol is sure to kill a dog or cat that ingests even a small amount so no way will I continue to use it. Sweet Freedom on the other hand is made entirely from apples grapes and carob and is great as a sweetener. I use it all the time now.It even won a “great Taste ” award.It is fairly easy to obtain and is stocked by Goodness Direct ( mail order ) and Tescos.
Hi
Just my own personal thoughts, but I am stearing clear of anything that is not in it’s raw natural sugar state, e.g Honey, natural Maple syrup, wholes dates ground to a liquid paste, raisins, etc all in moderation, this way you get the hint of sweeteness needed sometimes, but with the fibre and vitamins and minerals, it;s the processing that I believe does the damage.
So right Sue. I think that there is a lot of scaremongering going on and moderation is the key.I make fruit bars for myself and always use dates as a sweetener.I also include dried apricots and goji berries in my bars. What it boils down to is if we took notice of everything we read we would all starve. Go for organic whenever possible. As I have said before I do use Sweet Freedom as it is as near to natural as can be in a commercial market.
“Natural Maple syrup” is not raw Sue, it’s boiled down for hours. Also dates have an extremely high glycemic release, careful of that one.
There’s a lot of controversy about a high fruit diet. The raw fruit proponents say it’s fine if you don’t ingest fruit with fat. Others say it promotes and feeds cancer. It will be interesting to find out which will be scientifically proven to be correct. But that’s not going to happen any time soon, it will take a significant amount of unbiased research.
The obesity epidemic in the US is far more frightening than any fruit / cancer link. White flour, sugar, and meat / dairy fat is doing a lot more damage to the US than any terrorist ever will.
Personally, I’ll stick with my Vitamix smoothies… loaded with greens (like kale, cilantro etc.), and beets, ginger, blueberries etc. You can goodbye to body fat and viruses when you replace one or 2 meals a day with green smoothies, our bodies love them.
First of all thanks to Hugh for this article….after reading Dr. Mercola I got a bit suspicious as he is trashing fructose and saying how much better glucose is. I do know that some (not all) agave companies cut the agave with HFCS, which is a chemical combo and actually has alot of glucose in it. I agree with all who say stick to Mother Nature above alot of “studies” and by all means get plenty of greens! And what Hugh has said that each person is different.
Blessings
I wanted to say thanks to Robert for the article…….
And to all you informed folks out there……lots of good info.