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An oncology dietitian in the US has shared some foods that she never orders as she pursues a cancer-preventing lifestyle.
We all know that eating plenty of fruit and vegetables is a standard recommendation for avoiding cancer, and it’s also increasingly common to hear that certain foods have been linked with potentially-heightened cancer risks.
Red meat, for example, has been linked with bowel and colorectal cancers, as have certain starchy foods that release acrylamides. Burned toast contains particularly high levels of acrylamides, and some studies have suggested they may be carcinogenic.
If you’re already wised up on those recommendations, dietitian Nichole’s extra suggestions for foods to avoid may be of interest.
Speaking on her TikTok account, @oncology.nutrition.rd, Nichole kicked things off by saying she abstains from “all types of alcohol, including red wine”.
According to Nichole, red wine “is going to increase your risk of six different cancers” thanks to “the ethanol within the alcohol”. It’s unclear why she’s specifically called out red wine given that all alcoholic beverages contain ethanol.
"So many people are encouraging people to have alcohol to destress, to cope with emotions, to have fun, but really any consumption of alcohol will immediately start to increase your risk of cancer.
"So I don't drink alcohol, take it out."
Moving on from booze, Nichole then took aim at a contender for the very-best pizza topping.
That’s right, it’s pepperoni. Who’d have thought that deliciously concave little red slice of processed meat – complete with oil pooled inside it – might be bad news for our health?
“I do not order a pepperoni pizza,” she says in the video. “Processed meats increase colorectal cancer at any level of consumption," she said.
She then elaborated that pepperoni is one of a list of processed meats that she avoids: "hotdogs, deli meats, those pre-cooked meats, any consumption of that is going to be increasing your risk of cancer.
"So I do not have pepperoni pizza. What I like to put on my pizza, I'll have cheese or I'll go vegetarian. I'll do chicken or I'll even get raw sausage from a store, cook that, and then I'll make a homemade pizza and put that on top.
"So, mostly chicken, mostly veggie, no pepperoni.”
Red meat might have thought it was going to get away with it this time, but Nichole added: “Red meat is not going to increase risk of cancer at any consumption like alcohol and processed meats do,” she said. “However, red meats will increase risk of colorectal cancer after 18 ounces a week," she said.
"I usually keep to about one serving of red meat a week or I just don't have any at all.
"And so when I'm going out to eat or cooking at home, I'll build my meals around things like chicken, turkey, fish, seafood, or even different types of plant proteins like soy and things like that.
"So I don't order a lot of red meat, but up to 18 ounces a week is okay. Beyond that, you're increasing the risk of colorectal cancer."
If you’re interested in modifying your diet to decrease your risk of cancer, there are a few things to bear in mind.
The first is that TikTok isn’t a place to get credible information. While much of what Nichole said in her videos seems accurate, it’s important to corroborate things you read or see online with publicly-available scientific reports and studies.
Second, there is no way to guarantee that you won’t get cancer. Cancer Research UK estimates that just 38% of cancers are preventable, meaning 62% strike regardless of an individual’s lifestyle choices.
Making healthy choices is certainly recommended, but no diet is a panacea to cancer risk.
If you would like to discuss any of these issues, you can contact Macmillan’s Cancer Support Line on 0808 808 00 00, 8am–8pm seven days a week.
Featured Image Credit: Mitch Diamond via Getty Images
Rachael Davis