Cancer is a metabolic disease, not a genetic disease. The genetic mutations are a downstream effect of defective energy metabolism.
If you or your family and friends have been affected by cancer, read this abridged version of a recent interview with Dr. Seyfried.
Thomas Seyfried, Ph.D., is a professor of biology at Boston College and a leading expert and researcher in cancer metabolism and nutritional ketosis. Ketogenic therapy requires limiting net carbs (carbs less fiber) and limiting protein.
Cancer is a metabolic disease, not a genetic disease. The genetic mutations seen in some cancers are a downstream effect of defective energy metabolism in the mitochondria (the energy stations in your cells). As long as your mitochondria remain healthy and functional, your chances of developing cancer are low.
The traditionally accepted dogma (view) is that cancer is a genetic disease. As noted by Seyfried:
“A dogma is considered irrefutable truth… The problem with dogma is that it sometimes blinds you to alternative views and creates ideologies that are extremely difficult to change.
But the evidence is mounting that the mutations we see, which are the main focus and basis for the genetic theory, are in fact downstream effects of this disruption in metabolism (life-sustaining processes)…”
Seyfried followed research by independent and respected scientists within various disciplines, who conducted valuable experiments to provide a strong scientific basis for the theory that cancer is indeed a metabolic disease, and not a genetic disease, and that genetic mutations are a downstream effect of defective energy metabolism in the mitochondria.
Nuclear transfer experiments disproved the gene theory. When the nuclei of a cancer cell were transferred to healthy cytoplasm (material in the cell membrane), the new cytoplasm did NOT form cancer.
If genetic mutations are not the primary cause of cancer, but rather a secondary, downstream effect of dysfunctional cell respiration, why and how do mutations arise? Seyfried explains: “Once the cells’ respiration (oxygen intake and carbon dioxide release) is damaged, that damage leads to a compensatory fermentation (which exists without oxygen), which requires the upregulation (increasing the response) of oncogenes (cancer genes).
Damaged breathing also produces large amounts of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and secondary free radicals that damage DNA proteins and lipids (fats in your cell membranes). The ROS also cause mutations in the nuclear genome. The mutations are therefore the result of defective respiration and subsequent excessive ROS production.
Dr. Seyfried says: “Those nuclear transfer experiments were always present in the literature. They were considered anomalies.
It was merely interpreting a series of experiments in light of the origins of the disease, and then asking what conclusion these experiments would support. Would it support the nuclear genetic theory of cancer, or would it support the mitochondrial metabolic theory of cancer? In each of these cases, the results supported the metabolic theory of cancer more strongly than the nuclear genetic theory.
Why hasn’t the war against cancer been won yet? The cancer industry focuses on the downstream effects of the problem. Dr. Seyfried says, “Even though you may have success for a few months, or in some people even a year, the majority of people will not respond effectively to these types of therapies.”
If defective mitochondria are responsible for the development of cancer, and defective energy metabolism is responsible for the majority of the disease’s hallmarks, how do you treat the disease?
The answer is: be an efficient fat burner. Fat-derived ketone bodies reduce the production of ROS through a process. Therefore, ketone bodies are considered a ‘cleaner’ fuel. Today, most people burn glucose as their primary fuel, thanks to an abundance of sugar and processed grains in the diet and a shortage of healthy fats.
When less ROS is generated in the mitochondria, you get less mitochondrial damage and less DNA damage. Switching to ketones to fuel your body is the most important part of cancer treatment.
“One of the things that causes cancer is inflammation. … Chronic high blood sugar levels cause inflammation. … Glucose itself is not carcinogenic, but increased dysregulated (poorly controlled) glucose metabolism can lead to inflammation and cause a number of other disturbances in the body’s overall metabolism,” says Seyfried.
Do not confuse nutritional ketosis with ketoacidosis. These are two completely different states.
As Seyfried noted, “Mitochondria actually become very healthy when ketones are metabolized, unlike some other fuels, especially glucose.”
What about preventing diseases with antioxidants? If you suppress reactive oxygen species (ROS) indiscriminately, you create biological dysfunction. When your body burns ketones as its primary fuel, you have neither too much nor too little ROS.
It is much more effective to tackle ROS generation at the source, the fuel your body primarily burns for energy. Change the fuel, from sugar to fat, to generate less ROS.
Ketones prevent dysregulated ROS production, which reduces your risk of cancer: “There’s no doubt about that. It’s what we call a homeostatic state (the cell’s ability to maintain internal stability),” Seyfried notes. “Ketones prevent dysregulated ROS production … You ensure that your body stays healthy for longer. That’s basically what we’re doing here… Cancer is accelerated entropy, a total disorganization of the homeostatic parameters within cells and outside the cells in the morphogenetic field and in the entire body itself.
If you think of cancer as a metabolic disease, as Seyfried explains, you treat it this by targeting the fuels that the cancer cells use, mainly glucose and glutamine.
According to Dr. Seyfried, the risk of developing cancer is reduced to at least 80% if you prevent damage to your mitochondria.
Prevent cancer and most major diseases by eating fewer carbohydrates and proteins and exercising more.
Cancer cells can also use glutamine for energy and growth. The combination of both glucose and glutamine (the common amino acid in proteins) creates a truly ‘supercharged system’. Seyfried notes.
Limit your net carbs (carbs minus fiber) to less than 50 grams per day and your protein to less than 1 gram per kilogram of lean body mass. How much protein can be found in my blog post https://2healthyhabits.wordpress.com/2018/11/09/how-much-protein-do-you-need-in-nutritional-ketosis/ For more information, read my blog post, How Do I Follow the Ketogenic Diet? https://2healthyhabits.wordpress.com/2018/04/13/how-do-i-do-the-ketogenic-diet/
For the layman, Dr. Seyfried is a major contributor to the book Tripping over the Truth: How the Metabolic Theory of Cancer Is Overturning One of Medicine’s Most Entrenched Paradigms https://www.amazon.ca/Tripping-over-Truth-Overturning-Entrenched/dp/1603587292/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=VX20GWBM2VV4VYH885FK
If you really want to dive deep into the details of therapeutic ketosis, read Seyfried’s book, “Cancer as a Metabolic Disease: On the Origin, Management, and Prevention of Cancer.” If you want to start with a shorter treatise, you can read his article “Cancer as a Metabolic Disease: Implications for Novel Therapeutics,” published in the journal Carcinogenesis in 20144, or his 2015 article in the journal Frontiers, entitled “Cancer as a Mitochondrial Metabolic
Too many people have died and are still dying unnecessarily. It’s time to get back on track. The information about preventing cancer and other chronic diseases already exists. It’s just a matter of applying it.
Source: Why cancer should be treated as a metabolic disease. Here is the link https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2019/01/06/metabolic-disease.aspx
For those battling cancer personally or with a family member Integrative Cancer Coach Meme Grant uses both the ketogenic and GAPS diets on her website Personalized coaching for every stage of your cancer journey https://integrativecancercoach.com/
Disclaimer: The content of this email or post is not intended for the treatment or prevention of disease, nor as a substitute for medical treatment, nor as an alternative to medical advice. The use of recommendations is the reader’s choice and risk.
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