Well, that would be ironic. I switched to soya milk instead of dairy milk to helpo alleviate the effects of Somatuline on my digestive system. So I would have started soya milk at the same time as dropping the Somatuline nearly six months ago... a double whammy? Well, I just had a GH day curve last week, so maybe I will find out soon.

It's illegal in the EU to feed growth hormones to cattle, so the added GH in cows would not be a problem here (UK).

How much soya makes a difference? Soya milk would have less concentrated soya in it than tofu, for example.

I found a reference (http://cat.inist.fr/?aModele=afficheN&cpsidt=18943059) that said "High intakes of dietary protein, especially animal and soy protein, appear to increase IGF-1. "
That would implicate all the meat-eaters amongst you too! (I'm a vegetarian so my only animal-origin protein is from dairy or egg)

Yes, we could with some authoritative guidance here!

John

Hi John,

I heard a speech by Dr. John McDougall describing the link between soy isolate proteins and high igf-1 levels. You can access it by googling soy igf-1.

McDougall is a doctor who makes a living out of "health medicine" and has an active web presence marketing this and that......so i dont know how credible he is....but there is a study where patients were given soy as opposed to diary products in high amounts and theh their igf-1 levels were measured....with pretty dramatic results.

I think i am going to switch to almond and rice milk and see what happens.....

BTW, its very good to hear from you! I hope you are well.....i am actually doing a little better, and i am getting another shot and fresh testing on friday.

Best wishes, Ledgy

John,

I seem to recall that you were going to start on cabergoline? How is that going?

I found McDougall's Newsletter:

"Another recent study showed how 40 grams of soy or cow-milk protein concentrate added to the diet significantly increases levels of a powerful cancer-promoting growth hormone, called Insulin-like Growth Factor 1 IGF-1.29 However, soy protein was almost twice as powerful as the milk protein concentrate doubling the levels of IGF-1 with 40 grams of soy protein isolate. "

To put that in perspective, 200ml of soya milk has 6 grams of protein, so you would need to consume 1.3333 litres of soya milk to get 40g of soya protein. Or 2.66666 litres of cow's milk. That is quite a lot.

As for the cabergoline, I've not started yet, Ledgy. As I was due a GH day curve (which I did last Thursday), they said I should wait till the results come through from that before starting. That way they have a baseline to work with.

Re milk substitutes, I tried some stuff call Oatly, which is an oat-based milk substitute (Swedish I think). Quite honestly, it's vile. Hope you have more luck with the rice and almond substitutes.

I am wondering whether the soya protein has the same effects on acromegalics as it does on non-acros? It would be useful to see it tested on both.

John

Yes, such a test would be useful....unfortunately, we are such a small group that i am afraid noone is interested in testing dietary stuff on us......

Well, i may be a one man test! I will get igf-1 testing pretty much just as i am stopping soy products, so in three months it will be interesting to see whether that makes a difference!

PS I will definitely make it a point to avoid getting near Oatly! Even the name sounds quite ghastly!

The problem may be that milk, in general, is relatively high in carbohydrates and sugars...especially the less fat it has in it. That affects insulin (and thus "insulin-like") levels. In the case of soy milk, it is often significantly sweetened to make it more palatable; so, if you used unsweetened soy milk you might minimize the damage. But who wants to do that? :-)
Meat doesn't have the sugars with the proteins, so I would disagree in that regard.

Mystery,

I am not sure about that connection. Here is my understanding: IGF-1 is a specific hormone that is different from insulin. Insulin is produced by the pancreas and its function is to aid your bodys cells in absorbing glucose, which is "cell food". Insulin-like growth factor-1 is a hormone produced by the liver in response to the HGH produced by the pituitary gland. IGF-1 acts specifically on certain cells to promote cell replication and organ growth...that is why acromegaly is so insidious...it causes growth and swelling of certain organs.

So, what is it about both dairy milk and soy milk which causes increases in IGF-1? I cant believe it would be carbohydrates because there are plenty of foods with carbs which do not cause this.....

Any ideas?

I'm trying to remember what I read about IGF-1 at the phlebotomist's computer a couple of weeks ago. I had to have the IGF-1 blood draw again because she had submitted the blood a month ago for IGF-1BP, which is slightly different somehow. I was looking over her shoulder as she was trying to figure out what we were after, and there was a comment about what the IGF-1 test was for...something about nutritional status, which I gathered at that time was if someoneo was "over-nutritioned"(is that a real word???) I too very strongly wonder if there is a link to diet with this, or if diet could somehow affect our symptoms, if not the actual development of the tumor. I remember reading a while back about the possibility of a link to head trauma. I've had a head injury years ago.

PS: because cognition is not my strong point these days, if someone wants to give me direction I'd be glad to participate in a trial to study the effects of diet on acromegaly symptoms. I think there could be something to it, but wouldn't have a clue where to start.

HI,

Well I am vegy and on goat milk [very little] not into all that is written by the rest of you.. BUT I do suffer with feeling on and off Fatigued and left with no energy for anything.
ARE YOU DIABETIC?????? as this is a top unswer to why we feel the way we do.
Naturraly some vitamins can help. and when I do remember to take them I get longer positive breaks.
So yes diet helps But needs some support from vitamins.
I suggest a profesional nutrition.
All the best

Orit,

Thanks for your thoughts. I am not diabetic, but i am borderline diabetic......my glucose levels used to be in the high 80s but now they are around 110.......and i have gained weight. its strange, my glucose levels never really began increasing until i started taking the sandostatin lar shots. Also, i do experience that feeling of extreme fatigue and sudden overwhelming hunger that diabetics sometimes feel.....

i think it would be fabulous if someone were to design diets for acromegalics.....i wonder if a traditional type two diabetes diet is something i should be on? Are you diabetic? Are you on a special diet? What vitamins do you take or recommend?

thanks so much for posting this as it is very helpful. i have switched to almond, rice, and particular hemp milk - b/c i understand that there are many other negative effects of soy milk - it changes the estrogen, sex hormones situation in the body negatively. some people even say it causes breast cancer. also most soy in usa is genetically modified - very bad. so if you do drink soy, make sure it says Not genetically modified.

i think hemp is great b/c it is very healthy for you. almond can be high in fat, and rice may be to high glycemic and bad for diabetics or prediabetics, or most of us who i think need to preventatively watch our blood glucose levels.

side note - known side effect of Sando lar is diabetes or raised blood sugar, i have the same problem - weight gain, increased blood sug since being on it.

"Most recently, milk consumption has been linked to prostate cancer due to high levels of the compound insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1), both present in dairy products and in increased levels in the bodies of those who consume dairy on a regular basis. A recent study showed that men who had the highest levels of IGF-1 had more than four times the risk of prostate cancer compared with those who had the lowest levels."

Source: http://www.cancerproject.org/survival/cancer_facts/prostate.php

I have read similar conclusions about dairy milk.....and also that soy milk causes even higher levels of igf-1 in the body than does dairy milk....

I am just about ready to begin pouring water into my cereal bowl!!

Incidentally, my psa levels have rapidly increased in the last year.....

Ledgy

I hope that isn't chlorinated water you are pouring into your cereal bowl...

:-)

John