New Delhi, October 16 (IANS). Keto diet is considered effective in weight loss. It has high amount of fats and low amount of carbohydrates. A new study conducted recently has warned about this. It is said that this may increase the risk of breast cancer.
Research from the University of Utah in the US has shown that high lipid levels due to fatty acids (which characterize obesity and are responsible for tumor growth) may also increase the risk of triple-negative breast cancer.
This study in preclinical mouse models suggests that breast cancer patients and obese patients may benefit from lipid-lowering therapy – and should avoid high-fat weight loss diets such as ketogenic ones.
“The main thing here is that people have underestimated the importance of fats and lipids in a broader term like obesity,” said Karen Hilgendorf of the university’s Huntsman Cancer Institute.
Hilgendorf added, “But our study shows that breast cancer cells are actually addicted to lipids, and the abundance of lipids in obese patients is one reason why breast cancer becomes more aggressive in these patients.”
The team analyzed models of mice on a high-fat diet and used models that were designed to have hyperlipidemia (high amounts of lipids in the blood) without other key symptoms of obesity, such as high glucose and insulin levels.
The findings, published in the journal Cancer & Metabolism, showed that high lipids alone were enough to accelerate tumor growth. Interestingly, reducing lipid content in the presence of high glucose and insulin levels was also sufficient to slow the growth of breast cancer cells.
Importantly, the study showed that although the keto diet may lead to weight loss, which is essential for cancer patients, the high fat content “may have serious unintended side effects – even causing tumor growth.”
Studies suggest that lipids may also promote tumors in obese patients who have other types of breast cancer or ovarian or colorectal cancer.
–IANS
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