Stale boiled peanuts may cause liver cancer — expert

Don’t go nuts over boiled peanuts.

A cancer specialist warned yesterday that eating stale boiled peanuts may lead to liver cancer.

Talking on gastro-intestinal diseases in general, Dr. Priscilla Caguioa, president of the Philippine Society of Medical Oncology, said fungi grow on boiled peanuts that are stored or not consumed immediately.

Once ingested, the fungi will then release a toxic substance called aflatoxin that automatically attacks and destroys the liver, she said.

Caguioa, however, said there is no cause for alarm in eating fried or dried peanuts since the preparations involved do not cause the growth of fungi.

Caguioa also belied the age-old belief that eating peanuts makes a person more intelligent because they stimulate the brain or enhance its capacities. Peanuts should only be eaten once a week, she added.

"To say that eating peanuts makes a person more intelligent is unfounded. As a matter of fact, eating too much peanuts will inevitably cause uric acid to accumulate in the joints, leading to rheumatism, gout or arthritis," she pointed out.

She added that colon cancer is also among the gastro-intestinal malignancies plaguing Filipinos.

Among the factors that lead to gastro-intestinal diseases are genetic predisposition, an unbalanced or unhealthy diet, vices like smoking and drinking and a history of hepatitis particularly Hepatitis-B.

She noted that a diet rich in fiber will somehow decrease one’s predisposition to colon cancer.

For those who cannot resist drinking, her advice is to drink not more than two shots of hard liquor like whisky and cognac while beer intake should be limited to three bottles daily.

With the advent of cancer treatment, Caguioa said gastro-intestinal illnesses or cancers have been proven to be treatable, especially those that are detected early. Surgery can also offer relief.

Lastly, she advised against taking herbal medication specially for those that are at present undergoing chemotherapy because physicians will find it difficult to monitor the drugs’ effect on a patient’s body.