Bad news for me and all my carboholic friends out there, a recent study by Jennifer A. Emond of the University of California, San Diego, found that women who increase their carbohydrate intake (particularly starch) by a minimum of 2.3 grams (about ½ a cup of pasta) over a one-year period were at higher risk for breast cancer recurrence.
That is scary. Forget about that extra helping of pasta.
Researchers conducted a subset analysis of 2,651 women who participated in the Women’s Healthy Eating and Living (WHEL) Dietary Intervention Trial, a plant-based intervention trial that enrolled about 3,088 survivors of breast cancer. WHEL researchers studied breast cancer recurrence and followed the participants for an average of seven years.
The subset analysis involved an examination of how changes in carbohydrate intake influenced breast cancer recurrence. “The WHEL dietary trial, even though it focused on fruits and vegetables, fiber and fat, didn’t really have a specific carbohydrate goal,†Emond said.
I’ve said many times, I’d rather add an extra hour a day to my cardio workout than give up my carbohydrates but this latest study may be a game changer. Obviously, there is more research needed into these results.
Now, we really need to pinpoint what the healthy carbohydrate intake level should be for breast cancer survivors. It also raises the question, for me anyways, if starches can increase insulin levels and fuel new tumor growth in cancer survivors, can it initiate tumor growth in healthy women?
Will this study make you think twice next time before going back for a second helping of that penne?
Photo Source: Christian Cable
