The Answer to Cancer?

In the conventional medical arena, there is an alarming use of highly toxic agents and damaging procedures to treat cancer. In the dietary supplement arena, there is an alarming history of unscrupulous claims to cures for cancer. Even among highly schooled experts, there is little consensus on how best to treat most forms of the disease. But most can agree on this: Prevention is best. A healthy diet complemented with a handful of plant-based supplements may be your strongest defense.

Fruits and Veggies
Fresh fruits and vegetables are loaded with cancer-fighting natural ingredients including flavonoids, antioxidants, fiber, and phytochemicals, special substances unique to plants. Abundant consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables can reduce the risk of many common cancers. For example, cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, and Brussels sprouts) have demonstrated cancer-fighting activity, most likely because they contain glucosinolates: phytochemicals like indole-3-carbinol (I3C), sulforaphane, and diindolylmethane (DIM). People who eat cruciferous vegetables have lower-than-average risk for colon cancer, according to preliminary studies. And men had a 41 percent decreased risk of being newly diagnosed with prostate cancer if they ate three or more servings of cruciferous vegetables per week, compared with those eating less than one serving per week.

As consumption of fruits and vegetables increases, the risk of lung cancer goes down. Researchers think this may have something to do with quercetin, an antioxidant flavonoid abundant in onions and apples. Consumption of flavonoids in general, and quercetin-containing foods in particular, appears to help protect against lung cancer.

Lycopene is another potent cancer fighter. Lycopene is a carotenoid, an antioxidant related to beta carotene. The majority of studies (and there have been dozens) has shown that higher intake of tomatoes or higher blood levels of lycopene are associated with protection against cancer. The protective effect for lycopene consumption appears especially strong for prostate cancer.

Glucosinolates, quercetin, and lycopene are but three examples. There may well be hundreds of nutrients in a variety of foods that fight cancer. Look for sulforaphane, quercetin, lycopene, and antioxidants in supplement form at the store that gives you remedies. While most experts agree that cancer protection should not be expected from taking these nutrients as supplements alone, they can help fill any nutritional gaps in an already healthy diet.

Increase Fiber
In a review of information culled from many studies, people who eat relatively high amounts of whole grains were found to be at low risk of many cancers, including cancers of the stomach, colon, rectum, breast, mouth, and throat. Women who eat diets high in fiber are less likely to get breast cancer than those eating the lowest amounts of fiber.

A high-fiber diet may also mean a low risk for colon cancer, although how fiber achieves such protection is unclear. Some studies suggest it is not the fiber at all, but the fact that those eating a high-fiber diet may also consume less meat (especially overcooked or processed meat) and other animal products that deserves the credit. Vegetarians are less likely to get some cancers than meat eaters, according to most studies.

Since the average American consumes only 12 to 14 grams of dietary fiber every day (just one-half to one-third what the U.S. National Academy of Sciences' Food and Nutrition Board recommends), it's important to enjoy as many plant-based meals as possible. Fiber supplements are also an option. Most natural products stores offer a great variety, but be sure to select a product rich in water-soluble fiber (psyllium, guar gum, and pectin are good choices) and avoid products with added sugar.

Good Fats, Bad Fats
An alternative for those who do not wish to be vegetarian is to replace red meat and pork in the diet with fish. Fish contains "good" fats, like omega-3 DHA and EPA. Consumption of omega-3 fatty acids has been linked to reduced risks of many cancers. The omega-3 fatty acids found in fish are considered by some experts to be active cancer-fighting components. However, eating fish has become a risky prospect due to pollution of the oceans and dwindling marine populations. Omega 3s are also available in purified fish oil supplements. Flaxseed oil and algae supplements provide vegetarian sources of this healthy fat, too.

The fats found in olive oil (monounsaturated fats) may also be protective. Olive oil consumption has been associated with a reduced risk of cancer in several preliminary studies. However, the total amount of fat consumed-especially saturated fat, which is linked to an increased likelihood of recurrence and lower survival rates in people with breast cancer-should be limited.

Low-fiber and high-fat could be a lethal combination for men. Like breast cancer in women, the risk of prostate cancer appears to correlate with dietary fat intake. Ovarian cancer, lung cancer, and possibly uterine cancer are all more common with diets high in saturated fats. Consumption of high amounts of saturated fat from meat and dairy products increases the risk of lung cancer, even among nonsmokers.

Other Dietary Suggestions
Drinking alcohol in moderation (for example, a glass or two of red wine per day) is considered protective against heart disease. But alcohol consumption is another matter when it comes to cancer. Women who drink alcohol have a higher risk of developing breast cancer than those who abstain. Drinking may also raise the risk of colorectal cancer. Alcohol abuse, especially when combined with smoking, severely increases the risk of cancers of the liver, mouth, throat, larynx, and esophagus.

Many alternative medicine practitioners believe that sugar feeds cancer, largely based on the writing of 1931 Nobel laureate Otto Warburg, MD, PhD, who observed unusual utilization of glucose by cancerous tissue. Studies have shown that high blood sugar is linked to increased risk of pancreatic and liver cancers. But the links between eating sugar or sugar-containing foods and cancer are far from proven. Nevertheless, population studies have found increased risks of colon cancer and possibly breast cancer among those who eat the highest amounts of sugar.

Getting Started
Making significant changes to the way we eat and live is far more difficult than most people imagine. The number of recommendations for preventing cancer can seem daunting, especially if you try to implement them all at once. We are creatures of habit and need to be coaxed into change. Start with one or two achievable, short-term goals. Replace your white bread or white rice with whole-grain versions; add fish oil to your supplement regimen; get out and exercise one more time this week than you did last week. Your journey to better health begins with a single step.

"Diet and Cancer" by D. Divisi et al., Acta Biomed, 8/06 "Fruit and Vegetable Intakes and Prostate Cancer" by J. H. Cohen et al., J Natl Cancer Inst, 1/00 "Indole-3-Carbinol Mediated Cell Cycle Arrest of LNCaP Human Prostate Cancer Cells . . ." by J. C. Hsu et al., Biochem Pharmacol, 12/06 "Inhibition of Lung Cancer Cell Growth by Quercetin Glucuronides via G2/M Arrest and Induction of Apoptosis" by J. H. Yang et al., Drug Metab Dispos, 2/06 "Sulforaphane Retards the Growth of Human PC-3 Xenografts and Inhibits HDAC Activity in Human Subjects" by M. C. Myzak et al., Exp Biol Med, 2/07