Myth or Fact: Could eating asparagus cause breast cancer?

Shelina Assomull

12 Feb 2018

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#1 Asparagine, not asparagus, is cancer-causing
The study found a chemical compound named asparagine affected the spread of breast cancer. While the study did not show that asparagine caused cancer, it revealed that it made cancer cells that were already present spread more quickly.

Asparagus is a food that contains asparagine, but it turns out that our bodies also produce asparagine. Altering the level of asparagine in your body could affect the spread of already present breast cancer – but it is not simply down to cutting out asparagus.
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#2 No proof on humans yet
It is also worth noting that the study was done on mice with aggressive breast cancer. Mice are not humans and things don’t always happen same way for them as they do for us. There is yet to be 100 per cent proof of this in humans.
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#3 Asparagine is present in various foods
As it turns out, asparagine is not just found in asparagus; it is actually present in many other foods that we eat: dairy, beef, poultry, fish, nuts, legumes, seeds, soy, whole grains and more.
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#4 No direct link between diet and cancer
Although research is ongoing, there is still no clear link between an asparagus-rich diet and cancer. When faced with the results, Cancer Research UK’s head nurse Martin Ledwick said "at the moment, there is no evidence that restricting certain foods can help fight cancer." Therefore, there is no need to cut these gorgeous greens just yet.
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Good news: potential treatment
The findings could be good news. It opens up the potential for the ability to manipulate the amount of asparagine in people. This could alter the rate at which cancer spreads, which is a new way to treat the spread of breast cancer.

#1 Asparagine, not asparagus, is cancer-causing

New studies sparked big questions about whether eating asparagus is safe – should you be worried?

Freeze! Stop what you’re doing and back away from the asparagus.

At least, that’s what people were saying last weekend, when some media outlets reported a link between asparagus and breast cancer. The internet went into an aspara-frenzy, searching for answers to every foodie’s dreaded question: “Do I need to stop eating asparagus?”

The conversation was sparked by a recent article published in the Nature journal, claiming that asparagine – a compound found in asparagus can stimulate the growth of breast cancer cells.

Although this was found, there are a few important points to note about this study before we put that asparagus down for good. Scroll above to find out what they are. They will hopefully put your mind at ease so you continue to live a happy and asparagus-full life.

Shelina Assomull

Photos: Pixabay/Unsplash

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