I love my chocolate bars and of course there is nothing better tin the world than a chocolate blackout cake. Sugar is great, I think that sugar is la gift from god. I can not stand it when I am told that I have to stop eating all the things I love, including things with sugar.

At the Malecare support group there are a number of guys who have lost a ton of weight, look like Adonises and keep reminding the rest of us that sugar feeds cancer. Where do they get off making such crass statements, the nerve of them.

But alas, they are correct! Cancer cells do feed on sugar, they use sugar to nourish themselves. Dr. Otto Warburg, in the 1930s, pointed out several things that are different between normal cells and cancer cells. Normal, healthy cells require a constant flow of oxygen from blood circulation whereas cancer cells do not. I

Cancer cells and normal cells not only grow at different rates, they also metabolize differently. Normal healthy cells metabolize using the available oxygen, but cancer cells metabolize without the presence of oxygen. Cancer cells are able to use the process of fermentation, a procedure similar to making wine, which needs an absolute oxygen-free environment. The findings also show that cancer cells metabolism is faster than normal cells and thus their growth rate tis much faster than normal healthy cells.

The cancer cells are able to use the fermentation process to produce their own supply of oxygen. They will use the sugars stored in your body as well as any additional sugars you feed them (by eating a chocolate blackout cake) to facilitate the fermentation process. Sugar helps cancer cells grow in number as well as strengthening them.

There is one kind note in this, not all kinds of sugar feeds cancer cells. There are good sugars and there are bad sugars. Bad sugars, or simple sugars, are the main favorite food of cancer cells. These are said to be sugars with no nutritional benefit which you can find in sodas, sweet treats, sugary cereals, processed juice drinks, and of course my chocolate blackout cake. Good sugars, otherwise known as complex carbohydrates, are rich in nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, protein, and fiber. Fruits, vegetables, beans, and whole grains belong to the good sugars category. The sugars extracted from these food groups are utilized by normal healthy cells in their metabolism.

Isn’t cancer bad enough, we also can no longer enjoy our chocolate blackout cake. It just isn’t fair.

Joel T Nowak MA, MSW