Eating less of common ingredient early in life may slash cancer risk decades later

Limiting sugar consumption during the first 1,000 days of life, from conception through a child’s second birthday, may result in slower biological aging and a lower risk of cancer up to five decades later.

A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences investigated how early-life sugar intake influences health in adulthood, examining data from over 64,000 participants in the UK Biobank born between 1951 and 1956.

The researchers leveraged a natural experiment from post-war Britain, when sugar rationing ended in September 1953.

DIRTY SODA DRINKS ARE EVERYWHERE, BUT DOCTORS WARN OF HEALTH RISKS: 'METABOLIC DISASTER' After rationing ended, average daily sugar consumption across the U.K. nearly doubled — from about 41 grams to 80 grams — while consumption of other major foods remained stable, according to historical National Food Survey data cited in the study.

People exposed to sugar rationing during their first 1,000 days of life were compared to those who were conceived after the policy ended.

Researchers then examined cancer outcomes recorded about five decades later.

They found that people who spent more of their early lives under sugar rationing had lower rates of several cancers in adulthood, including liver, rectal, lung, prostate and breast cancers .

People exposed to early sugar limits also had longer leukocyte telomeres — protective caps on chromosomes that tend to shorten with age — equivalent to about two fewer years of biological aging .

They also had lower levels of Granzyme B, a protein associated with long-term immune activation and inflammation.

EATING COMMON DAIRY FOOD EVERY DAY MAY SLOW BIOLOGICAL AGING, STUDY SUGGESTS The study’s authors identified two key pathways that could explain these long-term benefits: a biological imprint and a persistent behavioral habit.

Five decades after rationing ended, adults who spent their earliest days under sugar restrictions were still consuming less sugar and eating healthier, more varied diets .

Experts said the findings add to ongoing research into how early diet may influence long-term health, though further research is needed to confirm the connection.

"What surprised me most was how persistent the effects were," study author Weilong Zhang of the University of Cambridge told Fox News Digital.

POPULAR DAILY DRINKING HABIT COULD NEARLY TRIPLE RISK OF DEADLY CANCER, MAJOR STUDY FINDS "We might expect childhood diet to matter for health, but differences in sugar exposure during just the first 1,000 days were still reflected in people's diets and biological markers roughly five decades later." "This suggests that early life may be an especially important period not only for biological development, but also for establishing long-lasting food preferences." Dr.