Keto Diet Increases Small Intestine Tumors in Mice
- Ketogenic diets, characterized by high fat and extremely low carbohydrate intake, may increase tumor development in the small intestine despite prior research suggesting protective effects against other gastrointestinal...
- Scientists examined mice genetically vulnerable to intestinal cancer across three different feeding regimens: a ketogenic diet, a normal diet, and a high-fat, high-calorie diet.
- The tumor increase did not stem directly from ketone bodies, but from the cellular breakdown of fatty acids.
Ketogenic diets, characterized by high fat and extremely low carbohydrate intake, may increase tumor development in the small intestine despite prior research suggesting protective effects against other gastrointestinal cancers. When carbohydrate intake drops, the body begins using more fat to produce energy, creating substances known as ketone bodies. Ketogenic nutrition was first used to treat epilepsy in the 1920s and has lately become popular specifically for weight loss.
Small Intestine Tumor Increases in Mice
Scientists examined mice genetically vulnerable to intestinal cancer across three different feeding regimens: a ketogenic diet, a normal diet, and a high-fat, high-calorie diet. The animals fed the ketogenic diet grew more tumors in the small intestine than the others. One striking point was that these mice did not become obese. Tumor rates in non-obese mice on the ketogenic diet matched or exceeded those of mice consuming high-fat and high-calorie regimens.
Fat Breakdown Triggers Cell Division
The tumor increase did not stem directly from ketone bodies, but from the cellular breakdown of fatty acids. Intestinal cells processing high volumes of dietary fat for energy experience increased protein activity, which can drive intestinal stem cells to divide more rapidly. Rapid stem cell renewal helps intestines recover from injury, but excessive division raises tumor formation risks. Omer Yilmaz, senior study author from MIT, pointed out that a diet beneficial in one tissue can lead to harmful results in another.
Contrasting Effects in the Colon
The same feeding regimen produced opposite results in the large intestine. Researchers also examined the effect of the same nutrition pattern in the large intestine. While the ketogenic diet promoted tumor growth in the small intestine, it suppressed tumor development in the colon, aligning with earlier studies. The new findings also raise questions about whether the protective effect in the colon stems directly from ketone bodies. Scientists continue to investigate why identical diets trigger entirely different outcomes in two closely adjacent sections of the digestive tract.