According to some research, sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO 3 or baking soda) could help reduce the growth and spread of cancer. What's true in all this? Can baking soda be useful in curing cancer?
Blood pH, alkaline diet and cancer
Not everyone knows that the blood pH CANNOT undergo abrupt fluctuations and that, to stay healthy, acid-base regulation should keep it at values between 7.35 and 7.45.
Recently some in-depth studies have hypothesized that the chronic lowering of systemic pH could negatively affect the state of health, predisposing to problems such as osteoporosis, reduced physical efficiency and premature aging. Let it be clear, however, that in most cases it is NOT the human body that is defective in regulating blood pH; rather, it is the lifestyle of the modern man that compromises its functionality. In particular, the lowering (acidification) of blood pH is promoted by some factors, including: acidic diet (too much protein, insufficiency of magnesium, potassium and calcium, excess alcohol, excess of nerves, poor or insufficient hydration - see PRAL), smoking, excess sodium, etc. The negative effects of such a condition could be: excessive excretion of urinary calcium and impairment of various bodily functions until the RISK OF RISK OF CANCER RISES. These hypotheses appear to be well founded, provided that it is considered that the impact of similar eating habits on blood pH is not (or at least is not the only) responsible factor; in fact, an "acidic" diet is also poor in fresh fruit and vegetables, rich in protein and animal fats, as well as exceeding calories, salt, alcohol and sugars; it is well known that similar eating habits, beyond the impact on blood pH, may favor * the onset of many diseases, including some forms of cancer.
It is not a coincidence that sodium bicarbonate is a common ingredient in various alternative anticancer therapies (highly discussed and controversial because they lack scientifically validated efficacy), where however it is often included in more complex formulations, including cocktails of different substances; for example, high dose vitamin C, selenium, quercitin and other antioxidants, citric acid, THC (cannabinoid), curcumin, amygdalin, melatonin ....
* PLEASE NOTE: neoplasms have a complex etiology, typically multifactorial, that is they can be caused or favored by a multitude of different factors (eg ultraviolet rays, ionizing radiation, intake of tobacco, alcohol, carcinogens and food progcarcinogens, certain viruses or bacteria, etc.) that can interact with each other and that in any case, to cause cancer, must defeat the body's defense mechanisms.
It is therefore irrational to trace the causes of cancer back to a single factor, especially if this is not accepted as a carcinogen by the international scientific community (as in the case of the chronic acidity tendency of blood pH).
Potential cancer benefits
If bad eating habits can lower the blood pH to the lower limits of normal, good habits should be able to raise it or otherwise keep it at optimal values, helping to prevent the onset of cancer. To help alkaline foods, some researchers have studied the therapeutic potential of an extremely widespread and economic molecule: sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO 3 ) in the treatment of cancer.
Below is the detail of the most important study supporting the usefulness of sodium bicarbonate in the treatment of cancer, a study that has been resumed and extremely dangerously and unconsciously magnified by various online sites.
The experimental " Bicarbonate increases tumor pH and inhibits spontaneous metastases" carried out by the Arizona Cancer Center (University of Arizona) 1 has shown that the extracellular pH IDEAL for the growth of cancer (probably present in circumstances of dysplasia, neoplasia and metastasis) is ACID type because:
- Increases the carbohydrate metabolism of neoplastic tissue
- Decreases blood perfusion to the benefit of tumor growth
- Stimulates the invasiveness and potential of cancer metastasis.
In the same study, oral administration of sodium bicarbonate in TOPI with breast cancer was investigated, undertaken in order to increase systemic pH and consequently reduce peripheral acidity of the neoplasm; the results were positive and after the use of sodium bicarbonate a moderation occurred in the formation of spontaneous metastases originating from guinea pig breast cancer. The therapy also reduced lymph node involvement but did NOT decrease the relative number of tumor cells circulating within the lymphatic stream itself. Furthermore, the administration of intravenous sodium bicarbonate in other cancer models has been shown to be useful in the reduction of liver metastases and prostate MA has not had any beneficial effect on the MELANOMA-type growth impairment.
As can be seen from this brief summary, the increase in pH and the reduction of acidity by means of sodium bicarbonate have undoubtedly produced a positive effect with respect to the growth and proliferation of breast cancer, lymph nodes and liver cancer and prostate.
However, there are also critical issues to this study7; for example:
- the treatment had no effect on the primary tumor in any type of tumor; it has not proved useful, therefore, to heal the tumor, but only to slow down its spread and reduce its aggressiveness
- oral sodium bicarbonate therapy produced only a slight increase in pH and proved ineffective in inhibiting the growth of larger primary tumors, and in reducing the development of metastases in highly aggressive fast-growing cell lines.
- The same authors of the study have evidenced how the quantity of sodium bicarbonate that would be necessary to the man to obtain the same effects observed on the guinea pigs, would result dangerous for the health of the patient (risk of excessive increase of the blood pH), suggesting that it would be preferable the use of proton pump inhibitors
Future objectives of the research
Dr. Pagel and his team are able to monitor changes in tumor pH using a very special magnetic resonance machine; thanks to this instrumentation, the research group will further investigate the effects of sodium bicarbonate on cancer in HUMAN patients suffering from the pathology in question. The same Pagel in an interview points out that sodium bicarbonate does not eliminate cancer, but slows it down and allows anticancer drugs to act more effectively. In fact, Pagel continues, " the administration of bicarbonate is however potentially dangerous both because in the long run it can cause irreversible damage to healthy organs, and because the amount of bicarbonate tolerated by the human body is probably smaller than in the mouse; and because not all tumors produce high levels of acids; therefore the cure could turn out to be worse than the evil » . That's why the researchers claim that the use of proton pump inhibitors would be more effective and safer than bicarbonate.
Additional critical issues and health hazards
One of the pioneers of alternative cancer therapies based on the use of sodium bicarbonate, Dr. Tullio Simoncini, was disbarred by the doctors for administering the product to patients suffering from neoplastic diseases for therapeutic purposes, publicizing their curative effect. discrediting some conventional cancer therapies, and making a personal profit. To this were added heavy sentences for fraud and manslaughter (see details on wikipedia).
This practice, in fact, is considered not only devoid of scientific basis but even harmful in certain circumstances, to the point of even turning out to be deadly if used at high doses.
Furthermore, there is no lack of studies that have shown that sodium bicarbonate is completely ineffective7, or worse may increase the growth of some types of tumors, especially urinary tract or stomach4, 5, 6 or enhance the carcinogenic effect of other substances ..
Ultimately, just waiting for further investigation, it is extremely optimistic even to hope to cure cancer simply by taking sodium bicarbonate.
At most, this intervention could help conventional anticancer drugs in their action.
Essential bibliography:
- Bicarbonate increases tumor pH and inhibits spontaneous metastases - Robey IF, Baggett BK, Kirkpatrick ND, Roe DJ, Dosescu J, Sloane BF, Hashim AI, Morse DL, Raghunand N, Gatenby RA, Gillies RJ. - Arizona Cancer Center, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA - Cancer Res. 2009 Mar 15; 69 (6): 2260-8. doi: 10.1158 / 0008-5472.CAN-07-5575. Epub 2009 Mar 10.
- The potential role of systemic buffers in reducing intratumoral extracellular pH and acid-mediated invasion. Silva AS, Yunes JA, Gillies RJ, Gatenby RA. Cancer Res. 2009 Mar 15; 69 (6): 2677-84. doi: 10.1158 / 0008-5472.CAN-08-2394. Epub 2009 Mar 10.
- Enhancement of chemotherapy by manipulation of tumor pH. Br J Cancer. Raghunand N, He X, van Sluis R, Mahoney B, Baggett B, Taylor CW, Paine-Murrieta G, Roe D, Bhujwalla ZM, Gillies RJ. 1999 Jun; 80 (7): 1005-11.
- Lina BA, van Garderen-Hoetmer A. (December 1999). Effect of urinary pH on the progression of urinary bladder tumours . Food and Chemical Toxicology 37 (12): 1159–1166. DOI: 10.1016 / S0278-6915 (99) 00111-8. PMID 10654592.
- Lina BA, Woutersen RA (September 1989). Effects of urinary potassium and concentrations and pH on N-butyl-N- (4-hydroxybutyl) nitrosamine-induced urinary bladder carcinogenesis in rats . Carcinogenesis 10 (9): 1733-1736. DOI: 10.1093 / carcin / 09.10.1733. PMID 2548752.
- Ehrnström RA, Bjursten LM, Ljungberg O., Veress B., Haglund ME, Lindström CG, Andersson T. (February 2007). Dietary supplementation with carbonate increases expression of ornithine decarboxylase and proliferation in gastric mucosa in a rat model of gastric cancer . International Journal of Cancer 112 (4): 722-733. DOI: 10.1002 / ijc.23151. PMID 17960625
- Martin NK, Robey IF, Gaffney EA, Gillies RJ, Gatenby RA, Maini PK (March 2012). Predicting the safety and efficacy of buffer therapy to raise tumor pHe: an integrative modeling study. . British Journal of Cancer 106 (7): 1280-1287.
- Bicarbonate and dichloroacetate: evaluating pH altering therapies in a mouse model for metastatic breast cancer. Robey IF, Martin NK. BMC Cancer. 2011 Jun 10; 11: 235. doi: 10.1186 / 1471-2407-11-235.
