Re: Cancer cells feed on fructose, study finds

[Guest guest]

Quote from article:

> " Now the team hopes to develop a drug that might stop tumor cells from making

use of fructose. "

>

I find it frightening that instead of trying to fix the problem and reduce the

fructose in the American diet, they look for drugs to fix the symptoms with yet

a new drug!

Patti J

[Guest guest]

Hi Patti,

Fructose is the sugar in fruit (as well as in junk food as high fructose corn

syrup). Fruit has a fairly good reputation as being a health food with lots of

terrific benefits for those who are trying to be healthy. So, I'm personally

okay with a drug that stops cancer cells from making use of fructose if it means

I could still drink my yummy fruit smoothies every day.

ar

>

> Quote from article:

> > " Now the team hopes to develop a drug that might stop tumor cells from making

use of fructose. "

> >

>

> I find it frightening that instead of trying to fix the problem and reduce the

fructose in the American diet, they look for drugs to fix the symptoms with yet

a new drug!

>

> Patti J

>

[Guest guest]

Ar

Fructose is definitely the main sugar in fruit, but that is not where the

majority of Americans get their Fructose.... the amount of fructose that we

consume has been increased a huge amount with the mass distribution of " high

fructose corn syrup " . Natural fruit has other redeeming qualities so I suspect

that moderation of natural fruit is probably a good thing.

From Medscape:

All evidence suggests that fructose ingestion has been rising steadily for a

long time[2,3] ( Table ), but analyses have been hampered in part by the lack of

good data. Vos and her colleagues make an important step in remedying this lack

of data. They obtained information from one of the recent surveys of the eating

habits of Americans, called the Health and Nutrition Examination Survey,

conducted from 1988 to 1994. It is clear from the analysis that Americans are

getting a lot of fructose in their diet. Mean daily consumption of fructose was

54.7 g/d, with a range of 38.4 to 72.8 g/d, and accounted for 10.2% of total

daily caloric intake. Consumption was highest among adolescents (12- to

18-year-olds), who consumed 72.8 g/d, or more than 12% of their total calories

from fructose. One fourth of this group consumed at least 15% of calories from

fructose. The largest source of fructose was sugar-sweetened beverages (30%),

followed by grains (22%) and fruit/fruit juice (19%).

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/575891

Hi Patti,

Fructose is the sugar in fruit (as well as in junk food as high fructose corn

syrup). Fruit has a fairly good reputation as being a health food with lots of

terrific benefits for those who are trying to be healthy. So, I'm personally

okay with a drug that stops cancer cells from making use of fructose if it means

I could still drink my yummy fruit smoothies every day.

ar

[Guest guest]

Additionally Patti, the more an article is read it comes down to the 'High

Fructose Corn syrup', the combination of Glucose and Fructose making it the

'High Fructose'. Then we have the issue of fruit juices which, without the

pulp, is truly high in sugar content and changes how the body deals with it.

The benefits of whole fruits far outweigh any sugar concerns except...perhaps,

when one is dealing with active and aggressive cancers. I say perhaps because I

do not really know. One needs to give serious thoughts about using a drug that

alters how the body reacts to good food. Smoothies, as the name implies,

should contain all of the pulp of the fruits used in their making. The

" Cancer Feeds on Sugar " is a lot more complex than avoiding fruit because our

bodies make glucose from the raw materials pumped into it. I suppose if one is

consuming only fruit, or mostly fruit, a price will eventually be paid because

of the lack of minerals and other factors found in vegetables. A well-made

smoothie a day would be of no concern to me regarding its sugar content. All

the science in the world never convinced me that a candy bar and a dish of

Blueberries are one and the same.

Joe C.

From: Patti Juengst

Sent: Tuesday, August 17, 2010 8:44 AM

Subject: [ ] Re: Cancer cells feed on fructose, study finds

Ar

Fructose is definitely the main sugar in fruit, but that is not where the

majority of Americans get their Fructose.... the amount of fructose that we

consume has been increased a huge amount with the mass distribution of " high

fructose corn syrup " . Natural fruit has other redeeming qualities so I suspect

that moderation of natural fruit is probably a good thing.

From Medscape:

All evidence suggests that fructose ingestion has been rising steadily for a

long time[2,3] ( Table ), but analyses have been hampered in part by the lack of

good data. Vos and her colleagues make an important step in remedying this lack

of data. They obtained information from one of the recent surveys of the eating

habits of Americans, called the Health and Nutrition Examination Survey,

conducted from 1988 to 1994. It is clear from the analysis that Americans are

getting a lot of fructose in their diet. Mean daily consumption of fructose was

54.7 g/d, with a range of 38.4 to 72.8 g/d, and accounted for 10.2% of total

daily caloric intake. Consumption was highest among adolescents (12- to

18-year-olds), who consumed 72.8 g/d, or more than 12% of their total calories

from fructose. One fourth of this group consumed at least 15% of calories from

fructose. The largest source of fructose was sugar-sweetened beverages (30%),

followed by grains (22%) and fruit/fruit juice (19%).

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/575891

Hi Patti,

Fructose is the sugar in fruit (as well as in junk food as high fructose corn

syrup). Fruit has a fairly good reputation as being a health food with lots of

terrific benefits for those who are trying to be healthy. So, I'm personally

okay with a drug that stops cancer cells from making use of fructose if it means

I could still drink my yummy fruit smoothies every day.

ar

[Guest guest]

The research was flawed , in my humble opinion, as they included people

consuming high fructose from GMO corn syrup in the study..

Yeah something that turn on and off more than 200 of our genes.. genes.

If they really want to know the effect of fructose we have enough

population on the planet who never had access to fructose from corn

syrup in their lives to do any research..

=========================================

ScienceDaily (Aug. 27, 2009) — Researchers have established the

conditions that foster formation of potentially dangerous levels of a

toxic substance in the high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) that is often fed

to honey bees. Their study, which appears in the current issue of ACS'

bi-weekly Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, may also have

implications for soft drinks and dozens of other human foods that

contain HFCS. The substance, hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), forms mainly

from heating fructose...

=================================================

<http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/03/100322204628.htm>

Eating High Levels Of Fructose Impairs Memory In Rats

<http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090716113247.htm> (Aug.

1, 2009) — Researchers have found that diets high in fructose -- a

type of sugar found in most processed foods and beverages -- impaired

the spatial memory of adult ... > read more

<http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090716113247.htm>

Fructose Sets Table For Weight Gain Without Warning

<http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/10/081016074701.htm> (Oct.

19, 2008) — Eating too much fructose can induce leptin resistance, a

condition that can easily lead to becoming overweight when combined with

a high-fat, high-calorie diet, according to a new study with ... > read

more <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/10/081016074701.htm>

Fructose-Sweetened Drinks Increase Nonfasting Triglycerides In Obese

Adults <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090212161819.htm>

(Feb. 23, 2009) — Obese people who drink fructose-sweetened

beverages with their meals have an increased rise of triglycerides

following the meal, according to new research. This effect was

especially pronounced in ... > read more

<http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090212161819.htm>

Fructose Metabolism By The Brain Increases Food Intake And Obesity,

Review Suggests

<http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090325091811.htm> (Mar.

26, 2009) — Scientists have built on the suggested link between the

consumption of fructose and increased food intake, which may contribute

to a high incidence of obesity and type 2 ... > read more

<http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090325091811.htm>

============================================

The Murky World of High-Fructose Corn

Syruphttp://www.trit.us/motherlinda/cornsyrup.html

High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is produced by processing corn starch to

yield glucose, and then processing the glucose to produce a high

percentage of fructose. It all sounds rather simple--white cornstarch

is turned into crystal clear syrup. However, the process is actually

very complicated. Three different enzymes are needed to break down

cornstarch, which is composed of chains of glucose molecules of almost

infinite length, into the simple sugars glucose and fructose.

First, cornstarch is treated with alpha-amylase to produce shorter

chains of sugars called polysaccharides. Alpha-amylase is industrially

produced by a bacterium, usually Bacillus sp. It is purified and then

shipped to HFCS manufacturers.

Next, an enzyme called glucoamylase breaks the sugar chains down even

further to yield the simple sugar glucose. Unlike alpha-amylase,

glucoamylase is produced by Aspergillus, a fungus, in a fermentation

vat where one would likely see little balls of Aspergillus floating on

the top.

The third enzyme, glucose-isomerase, is very expensive. It converts

glucose to a mixture of about 42 percent fructose and 50-52 percent

glucose with some other sugars mixed in. While alpha-amylase and

glucoamylase are added directly to the slurry, pricey

glucose-isomerase is packed into columns and the sugar mixture is then

passed over it. Inexpensive alpha-amylase and glucoamylase are used

only once, glucose-isomerase is reused until it loses most of its

activity.

There are two more steps involved. First is a liquid chromatography step

that takes the mixture to 90 percent fructose. Finally, this is

back-blended with the original mixture to yield a final concentration

of about 55 percent fructose--what the industry calls high fructose

corn syrup.

HFCS has the exact same sweetness and taste as an equal amount of

sucrose from cane or beet sugar but it is obviously much more

complicated to make, involving vats of murky fermenting liquid, fungus

and chemical tweaking, all of which take place in one of 16 chemical

plants located in the Corn Belt. Yet in spite of all the special

enzymes required, HFCS is actually cheaper than sugar. It is also very

easy to transport--it's just piped into tanker trucks. This translates

into lower costs and higher profits for food producers.

The development of the HFCS process came at an opportune time for corn

growers. Refinements of the partial hydrogenation process had made it

possible to get better shortenings and margarines out of soybeans than

corn. HFCS took up the slack as demand for corn oil margarine

declined. Lysine, an amino acid, can be produced from the corn residue

after the glucose is removed. This is the modus operandi of the food

conglomerates--break down commodities into their basic components and

then put them back together again as processed food.

Today HFCS is used to sweeten jams, condiments like ketchup, and soft

drinks. It is also a favorite ingredient in many so-called health

foods. Four companies control 85 percent of the $2.6 billion

business--Archer s Midland, Cargill, Staley Manufacturing Co.

and CPC International. In the mid-1990s, ADM was the object of an FBI

probe into price fixing of three products--HFCS, citric acid and

lysine--and consumers got a glimpse of the murky world of corporate

manipulation.

There's a couple of other murky things that consumers should know about

HFCS. According to a food technology expert, two of the enzymes used,

alpha-amylase and glucose-isomerase, are genetically modified to make

them more stable. Enzymes are actually very large proteins and through

genetic modification specific amino acids in the enzymes are changed

or replaced so the enzyme's " backbone " won't break down or unfold.

This allows the industry to get the enzymes to higher temperatures

before they become unstable.

Consumers trying to avoid genetically modified foods should avoid HFCS.

It is almost certainly made from genetically modified corn and then it

is processed with genetically modified enzymes. I've seen some

estimates claiming that virtually everything--almost 80 percent--of

what we eat today has been genetically modified at some point. Since

the use of HFCS is so prevalent in processed foods, those figures may

be right.

But there's another reason to avoid HFCS. Consumers may think that

because it contains fructose--which they associate with fruit, which

is a natural food--that it is healthier than sugar. A team of

investigators at the USDA, led by Dr. Meira Field, has discovered that

this just ain't so.

Sucrose is composed of glucose and fructose. When sugar is given to rats

in high amounts, the rats develop multiple health problems, especially

when the rats were deficient in certain nutrients, such as copper. The

researchers wanted to know whether it was the fructose or the glucose

moiety that was causing the problems. So they repeated their studies

with two groups of rats, one given high amounts of glucose and one

given high amounts of fructose. The glucose group was unaffected but

the fructose group had disastrous results. The male rats did not reach

adulthood. They had anemia, high cholesterol and heart hypertrophy--that

means that their hearts enlarged until they exploded. They also had

delayed testicular development. Dr. Field explains that fructose in

combination with copper deficiency in the growing animal interferes

with collagen production. (Copper deficiency, by the way, is

widespread in America.) In a nutshell, the little bodies of the rats

just fell apart. The females were not so affected, but they were

unable to produce live young.

" The medical profession thinks fructose is better for diabetics than

sugar, " says Dr. Field, " but every cell in the body can metabolize

glucose. However, all fructose must be metabolized in the liver. The

livers of the rats on the high fructose diet looked like the livers of

alcoholics, plugged with fat and cirrhotic. "

HFCS contains more fructose than sugar and this fructose is more

immediately available because it is not bound up in sucrose. Since the

effects of fructose are most severe in the growing organism, we need

to think carefully about what kind of sweeteners we give to our

children. Fruit juices should be strictly avoided--they are very high

in fructose--but so should anything with HFCS.

Interestingly, although HFCS is used in many products aimed at children,

it is not used in baby formula, even though it would probably save the

manufactueres a few pennies for each can. Do the formula makers know

something they aren't telling us? Pretty murky! Read the all article

at :

==============================

> Hi Patti,

>

> Fructose is the sugar in fruit (as well as in junk food as high

fructose corn syrup). Fruit has a fairly good reputation as being a

health food with lots of terrific benefits for those who are trying to

be healthy. So, I'm personally okay with a drug that stops cancer cells

from making use of fructose if it means I could still drink my yummy

fruit smoothies every day.

>

> ar

>

>

> >

> > Quote from article:

> > > " Now the team hopes to develop a drug that might stop tumor cells

from making use of fructose. "

> > >

> >

> > I find it frightening that instead of trying to fix the problem and

reduce the fructose in the American diet, they look for drugs to fix the

symptoms with yet a new drug!

> >

> > Patti J

> >

>