Study: GI diet may reduce risk of breast cancer

Researchers from the University of Sydney have found that a low GI diet may reduce the risk of breast cancer.

In a review of ten different studies on the impact an eating plan has on the development of cancer in women, it was found that following the diet was an effective way to reduce long-term health risks.

Professor Jennie Brand-Miller told the Herald Sun that people who ate a high GI diet for more than five years were eight per cent more likely to develop the potentially fatal disease.

"This makes sense because high GI diet produces high glucose and insulin levels and that is relevant in the case of any cancer because cancer cells thrive on glucose," she said.

"It's like adding fertiliser."

The glycaemic index (GI) is a rating that is used to measure the time it takes for certain carbohydrates to impact blood sugar levels.

Low GI diets have been popular for some years now and there is a growing body of research to suggest that it can help people lose excess fat.

Weight loss programs that subscribe to this theory usually encourage participants to eat foods that release glucose slowly into the blood.

Posted by Juliette Pemberton