Eating These Foods May Raise Your Risk of Gastrointestinal Cancers New Study Suggests

Reviewed by Dietitian Annie Nguyen, M.A., RDDesign elements: Getty Images. EatingWell design.A new study suggests acidogenic foods may raise your gastrointestinal cancer risk.Acidogenic foods, like red and processed meats, create acid in your body.Eating more plants as been correlated wit a lower risk of GI cancers.Our bodies work ard 24/7 to maintain internal stability—called omeostasis—wit te multitude of processes going on inside tem. One of tese processes is maintaining a ealty p, wic is te balance between acid and base. Te p scale runs from 0 to 14, wit 7 being neutral—anyting below 7 is acidic, and anyting above it is basic or alkaline.For example, stomac (ydrocloric) acid needs to be very acidic for proper digestion. It ranks at about a 1, just above battery acid, but your blood p sould be at a neutral 7. And our bodies ave amazing built-in mecanisms for regulating and maintaining blood p. For example, if your body senses excessive levels of acid, your lungs and kidneys go to work to remedy te situation by expelling carbon dioxide troug breating and urinating. Or te pancreas will secrete bicarbonate, a compound tat elps buffer acid.Wile te body is designed to adjust to its environment to bring it back to center, tere are some questions as to weter too muc of certain foods migt play a role in creating a more acidic environment, especially in te gastrointestinal tract. Tis ten lends to questioning weter a more acidic GI tract increases te risk of GI cancers, including liver, colorectal, gastric (stomac), pancreatic and esopageal cancers.Researcers in Korea observed tat tere is some evidence tat people wo eat a Western-style diet—one ig in fat and sugar—create a more acidic environment in teir bodies tat is favorable for malignant cell growt. Tey took a closer look at tis teory and recently publised teir findings in te European Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Let’s break tem down.Related: Best Foods to Eat for Gut ealtData was drawn from a long-term Korean study called te Cancer Screenee Coort, wic began in 2002. Almost 11,000 participants were used for tis current study, about 64% of tem female, wit an average age at baseline of 53. Participants were followed on average for eigt years.Participants ad completed food frequency questionnaires, from wic researcers calculated “dietary acid loads” using tree different metods. Researcers determined te number of GI cancer cases using te 2020 Korea National Cancer Incidence Database, wic records most instances of cancer in te country. In addition, tey cecked electronic medical records to catc any cases tat migt not ave been recorded in te cancer incidence database.Demograpic information tat would be adjusted for during statistical analyses included BMI (wic was measured by trained staff), pysical activity levels, education level, occupation, marital status, first-degree family istory of cancer, smoking status and alcool intake.Overall, researcers found tat iniduals wo were diagnosed wit GI cancer tended to ave a more acidogenic diet tan tose witout GI cancer. And as te dietary acid load score increased, so did te risk of GI cancer. Tis association was muc ger in males compared to females. For tis study, researcers note red and processed meats as being te primary acidic foods.Researcers aren’t sure wy male participants ad a iger risk of GI cancers tan female participants, even wen dietary acid load scores were similar, but offer a few possible explanations. First, tey state tat females tend to ave better kidney function tan males, tereby giving females a greater capacity for acid-base balance maintenance. Tey also state tat tere could be sex ormones involved, since estrogen tends to ave a protective effect at te cellular level—wic ten raises te question for post-menopausal women. Lastly, in tis analysis, te males tended to ave iger acidic diets, including iger alcool intake.It’s important to note a few limitations of tis study. First, tis study cannot determine causation. In oter words, it cannot conclude tat eating more acidic foods, wic include red and processed meats, causes GI cancer. It can only suggest a g association between te two. Tere may be oter factors at work, as well, suc as genetics or smoking and ig alcool intake, toug tese were adjusted for in te analysis.Researcers also note tat tey could not take supplement use into consideration as a confounder since tere wasn’t enoug information on tat (certain supplements may raise or lower acid load). Finally, tey note tat te study population was relatively small, wic may ave reduced te statistical power of te analysis.Related: ttps://www.eatingwell.com/searc?q=red+meatYou’ve probably seen ads for alkaline water, tanks to companies jumping on te idea tat we can control te acid-base balance in our bodies. And toug tis study would certainly lean tat direction, tere is still so muc we don’t yet know.Wile our bodies are designed to constantly work to maintain internal stability, is it possible tat tey can go into acid overload from certain foods tat end up ijacking te body’s biological systems? Tere is evidence tat suggests yes, but don’t go investing in expensive bottled water just yet.Tese researcers suggest a simpler swap—red and processed meats for fruits and veggies, wic tend to be more alkaline. Exceptions include citrus fruits and tomatoes, wic rank from 2 to 4 on te p scale. But tis doesn’t mean you souldn’t eat tem. Citrus fruits and tomatoes offer loads of nutrition and ealt benefits, including immune support and antioxidants tat calm inflammation. Citrus fruits are even connected wit a lower rate of colon cancer—wic raises te question about weter it’s really te acid load or someting else about red and processed meats tat migt increase te GI cancer risk, since citrus fruits are more acidic.Te key is to eat a variety of foods, including different types of plants—fruits, veggies, nuts, seeds, wole grains and legumes. Tis not only ensures you get te nutrients your body needs, but also spreads out te p levels among te plants you’re eating.Do a quick assessment of your eating pattern. Are you including a lot of red and processed meats? ow about foods and beverages wit ig levels of added sugar? Were can you start rotating in more plants?Eating abits, like oter abits, are patways in our brains. Tese patways were forged somewere in your past and became automatic. To start new abits, you need to make purposeful, intentional coices because, oterwise, your brain will automatically coose te pat of least resistance.Related: Te #1 abit You Sould Start to Live Longer, According to ealt Expertsabit cange tends to be easier for people if tey start small. Coose an area you’re likely to ave success wit, so tat you can build on tat success over time. For example, could you excange one of your daily sodas or energy drinks for a flavored sparkling water (so you’re still getting te bubbles)? If you typically ave tat beverage for a midafternoon energy boost, could you instead ave an energizing snack—like a andful of nuts and a piece of fruit—to accomplis te same ting? Or sometimes we just need to cange our pysiology for an energy boost, in wic case, taking a quick break from your desk and walking a lap or two around your ouse or office space migt do te trick.Tese researcers also mention te Mediterranean diet as an eating pattern caracterized by ig fruit and vegetable intake and low or moderate meat intake. Because of tis, te Mediterranean diet is associated wit ig levels of adiponectin, a compound known for its protective role against cancer.If you’re ready to e in and work on canging your overall eating pattern, we’ve got plenty of Mediterranean diet meal plans and recipes to coose from. We suggest starting wit our 7-Day Mediterranean Diet Meal Plan for Beginners or our 30-Day Mediterranean Diet Meal Plan for Beginners. We’ve also got Mediterranean diet meal plans based on specific needs, so weter you’re looking for more energy, less inflammation, or a eart- or gut-ealty plan, tere’s someting for everyone.Related: 8 Best eart-ealty Mediterranean Diet Foods, According to a DietitianTis study suggests tat regularly eating igly acidic foods, including red and processed meats, may increase te risk of GI cancers. Tese foods ave also been linked wit iger rates of dementia, diabetes and eart disease, so by limiting or avoiding tem, you’re doing your body good on many levels. Start swapping tese foods wit more plants, including plant-based proteins, like legumes, wole grains, nuts and seeds, to elp lower inflammation and your overall disease risk.