💩 Why Are More Young People Getting Bowel Cancer?

When I started as a doctor back in 2014 compared to now I’ve seen cases of bowel cancer appearing with increasing frequency in younger people.

By 2030 colorectal cancer is on track to become the leading cause of cancer-related deaths for adults in their 20s, 30s and 40s….but why?!

Toxins in the gut?!

A recent study published in Nature suggested a link between rising colorectal cancer rates in young people and a toxin called colibactin produced by bacteria like E.coli. Colibactin can mutate our DNA and potentially be one of the triggers for colorectal cancer…

But even more interesting is that people with colorectal cancer <40 years old are 3.3X more likely to have colibactin-linked mutations in their tumours compared with people >40 years old….

Plot twist…

Ok so now you’re thinking colibactin is the real villain right? What if I then told you that 30-40% of healthy adults have colibactin-producing bacteria in their gut microbiomes already?! But only a small section of these people will end up getting colorectal cancer. So there clearly must be another player in this gut-game that is interacting with colibactin to pave the way for cancer…

That other factor appears to be childhood diet.

Our gut lord and saviour…

In another study published in Nature Microbiology, scientists revealed that fiber could directly impact the negative effects of colibactin in the gut; mice fed low-fiber diets had higher numbers of colibactin-producing gut bacteria and this was associated with chronic low grade inflammation and an accelerated tumour production.

On the other hand, mice fed daily fermentable soluble fiber had a microbiome glow up with their guts becoming resistant to colonisation by colibactin producers.

TL;DR → fiber prevents colibactin-producing bacteria from causing cancer. Big win.

This correlates well with human data showing just 10g of fiber is a 10% lower risk of colorectal cancer.

Research has suggested these complex microbiome interactions and seeding of colibactin could be occurring before we turn 10 years old so it really is of benefit to us to start thinking about eating a diversity of fiber-rich plants at the earliest age we can and encourage our children to do the same!

Your microbiome is resilient but also very adaptable and malleable. It can change depending on how you mould it…so go forth eat fiber, fart like a king and influence your gut for the better!

Actionables for you for an easy 5g fiber win:

100g frozen peas = 5g fiber 4 squares of dark chocolate = 5g fiber 1 medium pear = 5g fiber 60g oats = 5g fiber 50g almonds = 5g fiber

P.S If you enjoyed reading this…I want you to send this to one person you feel would benefit from learning more about gut health or those little critters living inside us!

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