Keto Diets Linked to Higher Small Intestine Cancer Risk
A study by MIT researchers published in Nature suggests that ketogenic diets may increase the risk of small intestine cancer. While the diet is effective for weight loss and treating epilepsy, researchers emphasize that its biological effects vary significantly across different tissues.
Why it matters
This research challenges the broad health claims associated with popular diet trends and highlights the need for tissue-specific nutritional studies.
A high-fat, low-carbohydrate diet, also called a ketogenic diet, can help some people lose weight by forcing their bodies to burn fat for fuel instead of sugar.
In recent years, scientists have been exploring how this type of diet might affect other aspects of health and disease, including cancer. While some research has shown that the diet may protect against the development of colon cancer, a new study by MIT researchers suggests that in the small intestine, a ketogenic diet may increase the risk of cancer.
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