Think of your gut as your second brain. When you don’t fuel it properly, it will scream and throw a temper tantrum — and you will feel it in all the wrong ways. That’s why we need to listen to what our gut says because it is a reflection of our overall health. If you have stubborn acne, mood swings, bloating, and recurring illness, the problem could be coming from your gut.
“We want to focus on the gut microbiome because it is a key influencer to our immunity,” says Amy Daniell, RD, LDN, CNSC, a senior oncology dietitian nutritionist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
As it relates to melanoma and other skin cancers, a poor diet and poor gut health can affect the quality of your skin. You may experience frequent inflammation, acne, increased sensitivity to the sun, and even poor absorption of nutrients like vitamin D if there are issues in your diet — some of which can be related to risk of melanoma.
“Our skin is our largest organ and one of our most important protective barriers” Daniell says.
What is melanoma?
Melanoma is one of the most dangerous forms of skin cancer. It can grow and spread quickly anywhere on your body, and it is often caused by excess exposure to ultraviolet or UV light. The melanocytes, cells that produce the pigment of melanin, make up our natural skin color.
Some of the first signs include a change to your current skin such as a new mole or new, abnormal growth that is not a uniform shape and features an unusual assortment of colors.
Have any concerns? Consult your physician or learn more about melanoma at Dana-Farber.
What kind of food can I eat to reduce my cancer risk?
Antioxidants, such as retinol, are important for a healthy immune system. Studies have found that higher intake of retinol-rich foods, such as milk, eggs, dark green leafy vegetables, and orange/yellow fruits and vegetables led to a 20 percent reduced risk of developing melanoma.
Studies show selenium-rich diets may also reduce risk for melanoma and support survivorship. Foods rich in this antioxidant include Brazil nuts, scallops, lobster, barley, oats, whole wheat, wheat germ and milk. Preliminary studies with green tea also show possible benefits in melanoma prevention, but research remains in its infancy.
Aim to get antioxidants from food instead of supplements. “Diets rich in fruits, vegetables, whole-grains, beans, and legumes are very beneficial to maintain health,” Daniell says.
Learn more about antioxidant supplements and how they can be incorporated into a healthy diet during and after cancer treatment.
Vitamin D and melanoma
When we think of vitamin D, Daniell says, we think of sunshine. But you also get it from your diet.
There is a lot of research on the relationship between vitamin D and cancer. Low blood levels of vitamin D have been associated with an increased risk for developing melanoma and worse survivorship outcomes.
It’s important to note that more is not always better; benefits do not continue to increase infinitely with more vitamin D intake, and there are risks associated with excessive vitamin D levels.
“There is no definitive evidence that supplementing beyond recommended levels prevent melanoma.” Daniell says. “The diet-first approaches are typically recommended however some supplementation can be appropriate for deficiencies. Be sure to check your vitamin D levels to make sure you are getting the daily recommended intake,” Daniell says. Keep an open conversation with your doctor about any vitamins or supplements you plan to take.
This is quiet impressive. Increased risk for melanoma is associated with the presence of several known host risk factors such as light complexions and skin reactivity to sun exposure (burning versus tanning; ref. Other host risk factors include presence of dysplastic nevi, prior history of cancer, family history of melanoma, and immunosuppression. Other than sun exposure, there are few known exposures that increase the risk for melanoma . Diet has been hypothesized to be a possible modifiable risk factor for melanoma, and previous research suggests that certain nutrients may protect against development of melanoma, whereas other nutrients may promote its development . Therefore, further investigation of dietary factors may ultimately provide a means to alter risk for susceptible individuals as well as provide information on biological mechanisms of the disease process.
Intake of carotenoids and vitamins C, E, D, and A are hypothesized to reduce risk of developing melanoma. Carotenoids, vitamin C, and vitamin E, because of their photoprotective and antioxidant properties, are hypothesized to protect against the photooxidative damaging effects of solar radiation on skin. Some human supplementation trials have shown that intake of these antioxidants suppresses the sunburn reaction/light-induced erythema of human skin. Vitamins D and A, the receptors of which are found in human malignant melanoma cancer cell lines, are thought to prevent proliferation of malignant melanoma cells or promote their differentiation and apoptosis, as supported by studies in human melanoma cells.
we actually do not know what causes melanoma. Unlike basal and squamous cell carcinomas which are certainly sun accumulation related sun exposure is not as shown by acral melanomas which are very aggressive. Some of your risk factors are correct but some are not. Your observations are more in line with BCC and SCC skin cancers.
One might thinks since the metal iron is closely associated with melanoma, then meat, with its highly absorbable form of iron, heme iron, would be a bad thing to ingest if one wishes to prevent melanoma?
“ascorbate decreases cellular iron uptake by melanoma cells in a dose- and time-dependent fashion, indicating that intracellular iron levels may be a critical factor in sodium ascorbate-induced apoptosis”