The food industry has heavily influenced our eating habits, often promoting unhealthy choices. In recent decades, bowel cancer diagnoses in people under 50 have skyrocketed.
Two new Flinders University studies suggest this surge is linked to unhealthy diets. Red meat, processed meats, fast food, refined grains, alcohol, and sugary drinks are the main offenders.
Diet-Cancer Connection "We've found many direct links between poor diet and digestive cancers," says nutrition epidemiologist Yohannes Melaku.
He adds, "Unhealthy dietary patterns, marked by high consumption of red and processed meats, fast foods, refined grains, alcohol, and sugary beverages, present a worrying relationship with an increased risk of gastrointestinal cancers."
Cancers of the throat, pancreas, rectum, stomach, and others are possible. "With the growing number of digestive cancers, such as bowel cancer, being diagnosed worldwide, and increasingly in people under 50 years old, it's time for action to protect people's digestive health
Melaku believes educating the public about these unhealthy foods could "be pivotal in reducing GI cancer risks and improving patient outcomes." He stresses the importance of a healthy diet and lifestyle to fight these diseases.
These foods also affect insulin sensitivity, according to epidemiologist Zegeye Abebe and his team.