People are being urged to avoid overconsumption of two popular types of food after scientists found a link between them and a deadly disease. According to new research, eating red meat and sugar could raise your chances of developing bowel cancer.

This disease is one of the most common types of cancer in the UK, accounting for more than 44,000 diagnoses every year.

It is also particularly deadly, causing the second highest number of cancer deaths annually.

And in recent years it has sparked even more concern among medical circles as the number of young people diagnosed with the disease has risen.

Between the early 1990s and 2018, the number of adults aged 25 to 49 being diagnosed with bowel cancer, also known as colorectal cancer, increased by 22 percent in the UK.

While it is not known exactly what is causing this trend, it has been hypothesised that diet could be to blame.

And these most recent findings support the idea that what we eat is a major contributing factor to bowel cancer risk.

The research, which was presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), also discovered that individuals below the age of 50, who were diagnosed with bowel cancer, had reduced levels of citrate. 

Citrate is produced during the conversion of food into energy and was found to be lower in comparison to older individuals diagnosed with colorectal cancer.

Speaking to Medical News Today, Doctor Suneel Kamath – senior author of this research and a gastrointestinal oncologist at Cleveland Clinic, explained: “Our study used a technology called metabolomics, the study of breakdown products and production building blocks for our bodies, to look for differences in colorectal cancer in young people versus people that are older that developed colorectal cancer.

“Because metabolomics measures how each individual interacts with the exposures in our environment like diet, air quality, etc., it is a way to bridge the gap between our nature (determined by genetics) and nurture (determined by our exposures). 

“We found that a carbohydrate breakdown product called citrate (also called citric acid) is found at higher levels in older people with colorectal cancer compared to young-onset colorectal cancer.”

The study included 170 participants diagnosed with bowel cancer, with 66 individuals having young-onset colorectal cancer and 104 having average-onset colorectal cancer.

Scientists identified several metabolites that displayed differing levels between the two groups, including citrate and cholesterol.

They discovered significant alterations in metabolic pathways related to carbohydrate and protein metabolism in young-onset colorectal cancer compared to average-onset colorectal cancer.

These findings indicated that factors such as excessive consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages or red meat as well as obesity, which contribute to an excess of energy, may be risk factors for the development of bowel cancer at a younger age.

Dr Kamath added: “These findings, which are somewhat preliminary and should be studied further, suggest that focusing on reducing rates of obesity and also reducing red meat and sugar consumption in our diet could help with cancer prevention, especially for colorectal cancer.

“It is important to note that this does not mean that ‘sugar feeds cancer’ in those that already have cancer, but reducing sugar consumption in healthy people without cancer could help prevent it from occurring in the first place.”

To lower your risk of bowel cancer, the NHS advises you:

• Eat a healthy diet including at least five portions of fruit and vegetables a day
• Stay active and exercise regularly
• Lose weight if you’re overweight
• Quit smoking
• Drink less alcohol
• Eat less red and processed meat.