Of all the foods in the world that we eat none makes us happier than sugar.  It’s in almost everything that is sweet and tastes good.  Often we eat it because it’s there and once eaten it finds it way to all the happy cells in our bodies.  None is happier to be nourished by sugar than Cancer cells.  I didn’t believe it at first, but it’s true.  Cancer loves sugar and while I am NOT a Cancer expert I’ve recently become associated with the Center for Advancement in Cancer Education (CACE).

The recent quarterly that CACE puts out discusses a fermented wheat germ extract called Avemar.  The premise behind Avemar is that it chokes off the energy supply of cancer cells which reduces their ability to proliferate and eventually causes cancer cell death.  I was not aware that cancer cells utilize glucose (sugar) at a rate of 10-50 times higher than normal cells, however based on this information it’s easy to conclude that sugar is BAD for people who have Cancer as well as those of us with Diabetes.

This week I’d like to dedicate a moment to a close friend of my wife’s that was just diagnosed with stage 4 Breast Cancer.  It’s a tough topic and much more shocking when diagnosis is not done until this stage.  On a more positive note, I’ve recently met someone that was diagnosed as stage 4, three years ago and today is in complete remission.

When I want to binge I often go to the worst place possible and then think that having a diet soda helps fix the problem.  It’s not often but it does happen and for those of you who are attempting to keep yourself under control, let me simply say I am too.  It’s rare that I really get the urge to binge, but I did recently and here’s how I handled it.

I decided that what I really wanted was a french cruller.  You know the kind with the pretty pattern on top, it holds more of the sugary icing.  I figured just one would do it for me until I saw the glazed buttermilk donuts.  So I took one of each.  I needed something to wash it down with so I took a diet orange soda and boy was I set.

When I looked at the label and saw that there was High Fructose Corn Syrup in it.  I was turned off.  Here I am trying to help others and myself maintain and improve our health and it wasn’t the donuts that soured me…it was diet soda. 

I decided it was time to reassess this snack and I grabbed a bottle of water and took a walk without the sugar.  I guess that sometimes self control can hit before I sabotage myself.

I’ve found that the things I’m told by Dietitians and Nutritionists are not always right for me.  This is because I live with diabetes and have real life experience with the end result of food converting to blood sugar.  I test my sugar multiple times after I eat a food I’m concerned about to see how quickly it converts to sugar in my blood.

Whole Grains are great for you.  They give you fiber and other great nutrients, but they convert to sugar at different speeds based on how you prepare them.  First, you prepare the food, next you eat the food and finally your stomach goes to work on breaking it down and converting it to sugar.  When you cook a grain in water you are softening it up.  This activity makes the digestion process go much faster. 

Take Oats for example, when you cook them they become very soft and the starch is drawn out.  This causes them to convert to sugar quickly. Granola Gourmet bars use raw Oats.  You can’t tell but the cooking happens in the mixer and because of this the product has a firm texture but sticks with you longer.  I know it’s unlikely you are going to eat raw grains, but keep in mind that the more you soften your food up the quicker it’s going to convert to sugar in your body.