Of mice and men: Can The Real Thing prevent prostate cancer in the Pepsi Generation?
In mice, anyway?
By Howard Wolinsky
Can the Holy Grail for preventing prostate cancer be found in drinking sugar water?
Well, maybe it helped those poor Chinese lab mice that were fed Pepsi or Coke and sacrificed their balls in the name of science on behalf of the Pepsi Generation.
I am skeptical about fizzy water’s ability to fend off prostate cancer.
I have to admit I love Coke—not Pepsi. Yes, I think I can pass a blind taste test. But I wouldn’t recommend that our Pepsi Generation at risk for prostate cancer should go on a Coke or Pepsi diet based on a mouse study.
Researchers at the Northwest Minzu University in China have reported in the journal Acta Endocrinologica, the International Journal of Romanian Society of Endocrinology, that high doses of carbonated beverages may increase testicle size and testosterone levels. They also said consumption of carbonated drinks can reduce the risk of prostate dysfunction and cancer. In mice anyway.
One group of mice drank only water, while the other groups drank varying levels of Coca-Cola and Pepsi. The study found that the testes of the mice that drank only Pepsi or Coca-Cola were "significantly increased” on day 15 of the study.
“The outcome demonstrated a high dose of Pepsi or Coca-Cola could promote testis growth and development," the authors said.
In addition to increased testicle size, researchers also found that “the concentrations of serum testosterone in all mice were enhanced after the Pepsi-Cola and Coca-Cola treatment," which “indicated that high doses of Pepsi and Coca-Cola could improve testosterone secretion of male mice.”
“In conclusion, drinking Coca-Cola and Pepsi-Cola could promote testis development, enhance testosterone secretion, increase serum EGF concentrations …. Our findings provided the scientific basis for fully understanding [carbonated beverages] effects and their mechanism on development and reproduction functions of humans, but also benefit to prevent prostate dysfunction and cancer," the authors wrote.
Researchers noted the potential health risks associated with excessive consumption of carbonated beverages, such as obesity, cardiovascular diseases, and type 2 diabetes.
This study contradicts previous research showing that soft drinks caused harm to reproductive functions, reduced sperm quantity, and reduced sperm motility.
One such study included a survey of 2,500 men that suggested sperm quantity was reduced by 30 percent when a one-liter carbonated beverage was consumed every day.
(Chairman Mao with the symbol capitalism—Coca-Cola, The Real Thing.)
Unreal Things: White mice, Gleason 6 “cancer”
By Howard Wolinsky
I like Coke though I rarely have any these days/
I got into a stupid contest to find the best Italian sub in Chicago, washing sandwiches down with Cokes.
Big mistake. I ended up with prediabetes and then diabetes. It might have happened anyway.
Now, I have good diabetes control and could reverse it if I got serious about diet.
For you? I suggest a plant-based diet or a Mediterranean diet. Take a pass on the Coke.
My short ‘career’ in science
Back in fifth grade at Olver Goldsmith Elementary on Chicago’s South Side, Charles Scott, my favorite teacher in my elementary school career, wrote a note to my parents, informing them of his prediction that I was going to become a scientist. Mr. Scott was always supportive, a bright spot in those dreary wonder years.
He was a carpe diem kind of teacher. He talked me into becoming a patrol boy on those frostbitten days in the Second City.
He also missed the mark. I did become a science writer. Just not a scientist, though I in 2022 co-authored a very controversial article on Gleason 6 in a major cancer journal. (Is Gleason 6 the real thing—in terms of cancer?)
My co-author and former urologist, Scott Eggener, MD, is amused that I began my “academic career” in my mid-70s,
When I was a budding scientist in seventh grade, I raised colonies of white mice in our garage.
I conducted an experiment in which I fed half the mice a normal diet. The other half were placed on a diet of white bread and water.
All I can say is something weird happened to the bread-and-water group.
I was shocked to find detached tails and no bodies in the cages. The starving mice went all Donner Party and turned to cannibalism.
A sad end to my promising scientific career.
ASPI premieres AS 101 segments on genetics and genomics
By Howard Wolinsky
Do you know the difference between genetic and genomic testing and how it can impact your decisions on whether to follow Active Surveillance protocols vs. more aggressive surgical and radiation options?
Yale researchers recently reported that although patients generally understood the purpose of genomic testing in identifying their risk status, many did not understand the difference between genomic testing and genetic testing.
ASPI is premiering a segment of the AS 101 series aimed at educating patients about the differences between genetic and genomic testing.
The program will be at 12 p.m. Eastern, Saturday, March 25. Click to register
AS 101, like an introductory college course, was launched in 2022 to explain in short video chats the basics of active surveillance for the newly diagnosed, those in the “gray zone” with rising PSAs but no biopsy confirming the presence of low-risk cancer, and also patients who have been on AS for a while but are looking for a refresher course.
Each session features prostate cancer patient, Larry White, and his well-informed wife, Nancy White, speaking with top experts about questions they have about AS issues in an office visit setting.
The Whites discuss genetics and genomics from a patient point of view with Justin Lorentz, MSc, a certified genetic counselor and lead of Sunnybrook Health Science Centre’s Male Oncology Research and Education (MORE) Program, a registry for men with hereditary cancer. Lorentz, who is an instructor at the University of Toronto, is also a consultant to the Promise study, which offers free DNA testing to men with prostate cancer.
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The full series to date of AS 101 is available at: https://aspatients.org/a-s-101/
Episode 1. “Rising PSA,” featured Dr. Stephen Spann, a family doctor and founding dean of the University of Houston College of Medicine, who recommended that Larry who has a rising PSA blood level, and his wife Nancy, see a urologist
Episode 2. “The Urologist” focuses on the Whites’ first visit with a urologist, Dr. Laurence Klotz, of the University of Toronto, the father of active surveillance.
Episode 3. “Active Surveillance.” Dr. Klotz recommends Active Surveillance for Larry White.
Episodes 4 & 5, “Counseling Before DNA Testing,” and “Genetic Results.” The video focuses on Larry White’s inherited DNA to determine if he needs to take special steps.
Additional programs are coming with uropathologist Dr. Jonathan Epstein, of Johns Hopkins, on biopsies and Dr. Andreas Correa, of Fox Chase Cancer Center, on imaging prostate cancer.
AS 101 is a project of the AS Coalition, which includes ASPI, the AS Virtual Support Group from AnCan, the Prostate Cancer Research Institute, Prostate Cancer Support Canada, and TheActiveSurveillor.com newsletter.
Special thanks to Alex and Peter Scholz and their team at PCRI who recorded and edited the program.
Have you been recently diagnosed with Prostate Cancer? Do you need somewhere to turn with your diagnosis? Talk to men who know what you are going through. Join the Prostate Forum of Orange County on the second Tuesday of every month at 5:00 pm Pacific Time
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86164783897 Meeting ID: 854 777 494 53. One tap mobile: +1-669-900-6833, 854 777 494 53# (San Jose)
LAST-MINUTE INVITE. I have been invited in Spaces on Twitter to talk about my new book, "Contain & Eliminate: The AMA's Conspiracy to Destroy Chiropractic." Program is on at 6 pm Eastern today. Want to join in? go to https://twitter.com/nathaliejacoby1/status/1634229902399381505?s=20