Few people realize that a certain category of ingredients in our diet could fuel diseases rather than promote health.
This concerns a specific type of fat that is present in our daily diet. These fats are incredibly dangerous as they accelerate the rate at which disease spreads in the body. Consuming a fat-rich diet has been associated with a higher risk of breast cancer.
A diet high in fats means that about 60% of your daily calories come from fats. Fatty foods activate platelets and make them excessively sticky, thus promoting the attachment and faster growth of cancer cells in vital organs, such as the lungs.
Fats from processed foods trigger dangerous inflammation and disrupt hormones, directly fueling breast cancer.
These risks can be significantly reduced by eliminating ultra-processed foods and ultra-refined vegetable oils from the diet.
In addition, it is important to include healthy fats, whole and nutritious foods in the diet, which help reduce systemic inflammation and regulate hormones. In these conditions, a less favorable environment for cancer development can be created.
Breast cancer is not always inherited genetically (passed down from family or genetic mutations). Recent research shows another alarming modifiable risk factor: excessive fat consumption.
A study published in the journal Nature Communications investigated the effects of a high-fat diet on the progression rate of breast cancer. The authors focused particularly on the role of platelets, the blood cells involved in coagulation.
The results confirmed what scientists suspected: a high fat intake significantly activates platelets.
In mice fed a high-fat diet (60% of daily calories), the platelets did not behave normally; they became extremely sticky and aggressive. They began to aggregate, especially in lung tissues.
Aggressive platelets released a protein called fibronectin, which enhances the ability of cancer cells to adhere to blood vessels. Fibronectin acts like glue, providing cancer cells with a firm attachment to the walls of blood vessels.
In the absence of this protein, malignant cells would struggle to attach to the blood cells in the lungs, thus having a limited capacity to invade the lungs and spread throughout the body.
Increased levels of fibronectin, through high-fat diets, facilitate the attachment, survival, and rapid proliferation of cancer cells in new areas of the body.
When researchers blocked the action of this protein, the rate of cancer spread significantly decreased. This test demonstrated how dangerous a fatty diet is for fibronectin production and cancer advancement.
Another important test involved changing the diet of the mice. When the animals were returned to a normal diet, free of excess fats, platelet activation was significantly reduced, as was cancer spread. These effects occurred in a relatively short time.
This highlights how important dietary changes are and how significant the protection they offer against metastases can be.
Another aspect observed by researchers was that the blood from mice fed a high-fat diet coagulated more quickly. This change indicates platelet hyperactivity, meaning that blood flow becomes a more favorable environment for malignant cells.
Dr. Mercola recommends excluding vegetable oils high in Omega-6 and linoleic acid from the diet and replacing them with whole butter, ghee, or lard. These fats do not have an inflammatory effect and protect cellular health.
In any case, fats, even the good ones, should be consumed in moderation. For good metabolic health, fat intake should be about 30% of daily calories.
