Introduction: Food eaten at night stays in the stomach, promoting the secretion of large amounts of gastric juice, which irritates the gastric mucosa, weakens resistance, and leads to ulcers. If one frequently consumes fried, grilled, or preserved foods, the carcinogens within them can further damage the stomach.
Research has found a close relationship between a high-salt diet and the incidence of stomach cancer. According to data, stomach cancer ranks second in the world in terms of cancer-related deaths. In China, approximately 160,000 people die from stomach diseases annually, a situation even more severe in Japan. An epidemiological survey showed that among Japanese immigrants who changed their dietary habits of consuming high-salt foods like miso soup and pickles, the incidence of stomach cancer dropped significantly. Conversely, the decrease was smaller among those who did not change their habits, indicating that dietary habits play an important role in the development of stomach cancer.
Furthermore, scientists have found through animal experiments and human disease studies that as salt intake increases, the incidence of gastritis, peptic ulcers, and stomach cancer also rises. This is because after consuming excessive high-salt foods, the high osmotic pressure of salt directly damages the gastric mucosa, causing a series of pathological changes such as extensive and diffuse congestion, edema, erosion, ulcers, necrosis, and bleeding. High-salt foods can also reduce gastric acid secretion and inhibit the synthesis of prostaglandin E. Prostaglandin E helps enhance the resistance of the gastric mucosa; if its synthesis is reduced, the mucosa becomes more vulnerable to attack by various harmful factors, leading to gastric lesions. Similarly, high-salt foods contain large amounts of nitrates, which are converted into nitrites by bacteria in the stomach and then combine with amines from food to form nitrosamines, which are highly carcinogenic.
Late Diners Face Higher Risk of Stomach Cancer
After a busy day, having a late-night meal with friends is a habit for many. However, a recent study by Japanese scientists has found that frequent late-night snacks or eating dinner too late increases the burden on the stomach and, over the long term, raises the risk of developing stomach cancer. This research was led by Professor Hideo Kurata of the University of Tokyo.
They investigated the dietary habits of stomach cancer patients aged 30 to 40 before their illness and found that most had a habit of eating late-night snacks, with 38.4% of them having irregular dinner times. Professor Kurata analyzed that late-night meals are extremely harmful to the stomach because the lifespan of gastric mucosal epithelial cells is very short, about 2-3 days, requiring regeneration. This regeneration process typically occurs when the gastrointestinal tract is at rest during the night. If one frequently eats at night, the gastric mucosa cannot be repaired in a timely manner. Additionally, food eaten at night stays in the stomach, promoting the secretion of large amounts of gastric juice, which irritates the gastric mucosa, weakens resistance, and leads to ulcers. If one often consumes fried, grilled, or preserved foods, the carcinogens within them can further damage the stomach.
The researchers pointed out that under modern lifestyles, many people's eating habits need to change. "Eating late-night snacks is a pleasure for the mouth but a punishment for the stomach. For the sake of health, it's best to eat less of it."
To Prevent Stomach Cancer, Eat More Vegetarian Food
Stomach cancer is a common malignant tumor of the digestive tract, and men are more susceptible to it than women. Experts point out that digestive system problems, such as stomach cancer, gastritis, gastric ulcers, and colorectal cancer, are mainly caused by consuming too much animal-based food and processed foods (Note: "Processed foods" are those from which fiber, minerals, and vitamins have been removed, such as white sugar, white rice, and white bread).
Typically, carnivores require more gastric juice to digest meat, and their intestines are relatively short to quickly expel decaying meat. However, humans lack the innate functions of carnivores—the acidity of our gastric juice is only half that of carnivores, so we cannot digest meat quickly; our intestines are also much longer than those of carnivores, preventing the rapid expulsion of decaying meat.
Therefore, experts believe that the first principle of health is to eat more high-fiber plant-based foods, i.e., a vegetarian diet. If one cannot give up meat, the diet should be light, and the variety of food per meal should not be too complex. For example, digesting carbohydrates and protein foods requires different digestive juices; if consumed simultaneously, neither can be fully digested, leading to an overburdened stomach function.
Undigested food is also likely to accumulate in the intestines and putrefy, providing an environment for harmful bacteria to grow, which is one of the causes of cancer. Therefore, the best method is to not eat high-protein foods and carbohydrates at the same time; for example, meat should not be eaten with rice or bread. Vegetables can be paired with carbohydrates or legumes. However, fruits are best eaten alone.
If these principles are followed, it will not place too much burden on the stomach, preventing indigestion and ultimately causing various digestive system diseases. It is best to eat some fresh, uncooked fruits, vegetables, and sprouts with each meal, as their vitamins help in preventing stomach cancer.