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No, screw this - join me on a rant. The ketogenic brigade make these claims as their business model. So let's puncture it shall we?! (1/n)
..so what is the Warburg effect? The observation that cancer cells rely much more on inefficient glycolysis rather than healthy cells (2/n)
..in 1924, Warburg postulated that cancer was CAUSED by cells shifting their source of energy production from oxygen to glucose (3/n)
..however, later research showed he was wrong. This change is a CONSEQUENCE of cancer, not a cause - cart before horse (4/n)
..in fact, I've explained this in the Guardian before in more detail, here's relevant paragraph/ link (5/n) theguardian.com/science/blog/2… 
..so when you hear people saying SUGAR / CARBS / ETC 'feed' cancer, one's bullshit siren should sound loudly - it's plain wrong. (6/n)
Your body converts ALL carbs to glucose - and even excess protein. It doesn't 'single out' sugary carbs - glucose is glucose. (7/n)
Now, there's a link between obesity and cancer, but that's a different reason. The idea that x 'feeds' cancer is daft & simplistic (8/n)
..conversely, when you hear clowns like the Keto Kitchen claim that they have a special diet for cancer please DO NOT BLOODY LISTEN (9/n)
..cancer patients need careful nutrition during treatment, and as @DrRobertOConnor will explain, weight management is crucial - (10/n)
...bottom line - if they mention Warburg effect and diet, they DO NOT KNOW WHAT THE HELL THEY ARE TALKING ABOUT. (11/n)
..oh, side note: I research this stuff; even with the Warburg mechanism, oxygen conversion still happens, and is hugely important (12/n)
..for example, in these tumour spheroids it's lack of OXYGEN which encourages central necrosis. rsif.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/11/92/…
..hell, we've known since Gray's work in 1953 that lack of OXYGEN (hypxoia) has huge impact on patient prognosis /treatment efficacy (14/n)
..and indeed, as I wrote earlier this year, it hugely shapes treatment. ( birpublications.org/doi/abs/10.125… for reference) (15/n)
..all that is to say that cancer cells don't SUDDENLY just feast on glucose - the ketogenic narrative is wrong as it is simple (16/n)
End conclusion? Please do not take dietary advice from cranks who think they know oncology - they don't even know basic biochem (17/17)
