Gastronomical Approach To Fighting Cancer

You are what you eat. At times, you have to check your diet to prevent the occurrence of some diseases. Such is the case with fighting cancer. For everyone conscious about healthily living and keeping cancer at bay, eating foods that stop cancer or help prevent the occurrence of cancer is a better undertaking.

Cancer drugs are costly to buy. Besides, it is excoriating to cope with cancer even if it ends up being managed and cured. Therefore, preventing the disease before it strikes is the best thing you can ever do.

One of the prevention methods other than not exposing yourself to carcinogenic elements is to eat foods that fight cancer. These foods can as well help manage cancer when it is still beginning to develop.

Actually, food is medicine. A lot of fascinating discoveries have been made about the medicinal value of some foods. Take Raw Garlic, for example, its medicinal value has been known for centuries.

It has a range of medicinal uses other than cancer-fighting. Lots of other foods such as Pulses (Beans), Green tea, Broccoli, Tomatoes etc have been identified as foods that stop cancer. Here is cancer fighting foods:

Broccoli

Members of the cruciferous family of vegetables (including cauliflower, kale cabbage) contain cancer-fighting properties. Broccoli is a member of the group but it stands out due to the fact that it contains sizable amounts of sulforaphane.

This compound boosts the protective enzymes of the body and helps in flushing out carcinogenic chemicals out of the body. Experiments involving administration of sulforaphane to mice indicated that the compound also targets the body’s cancer stem cells – the powerhouse of tumor growths. A plate of Broccoli a day, therefore, can keep the Oncologist away.

Sulforaphane has been found to be potent against breast, prostate, lung, bladder and stomach cancers.

One normal cup of chopped broccoli provides approximately 92 micrograms of Vitamin K. Daily consumption of Vitamin K improves calcium absorption in your body thereby improving bone health and reducing urinary excretion of calcium

Berries

All berries contain useful phytonutrients which fight cancer. But not every berry is good against cancer. Raspberries, in particular, are concentrated with important phytochemicals (also known as anthocyanins) which are cancer fighting compounds.

Anthocyanins have been found to limit the growth and development of premalignant cells and slow down the formation of new blood vessels (which potentially supplies to a cancerous tumor). The anthocyanins in berries are potent against esophageal, oral, colon and skin cancers.

Raw Garlic

Garlic is one of the most famous foods that stop cancer. Garlic contains phytochemicals that halt formation of carcinogens and nitrosamines that tend to form in the stomach as well as the intestines during specific conditions (when you eat food with a lot of nitrates which is a commonly used food preservative).

Studies have shown that individuals who include garlic in their foods registers lower cases of colon cancer compared to those who never consume garlic.

Garlic is really good in fighting colon, esophageal, breast and stomach cancers. There is an association between increased intake of raw garlic and reduced risk of certain kinds of cancer which also includes pancreas

Walnut

Walnuts contain significant concentrations of phytosterols (compounds resembling the animal type cholesterol). When walnuts are consumed, the phytosterols blocks the estrogen receptors’ activities in the breasts’ cancerous cells thus slowing down the development of breast cancer.

Walnuts help keep the prostate and breast cancers at bay. Therefore, munching just an ounce of dried walnuts keeps your prostate and the breasts healthy for another day. Several studies have suggested that walnut benefits include the ability to prevent development of cancer, slow cancer cell growth or even kill cancer cells

Beans

You can’t list foods that reduce incidences of cancer without including beans. Beans contain high levels of fatty acid butyrate which is a growth retardant of cancerous cells. Studies conducted on rats have indicated that the fatty acid butyrate compound is effective against breast and colon cancer.

As beans comes under the legumes vegetables group, it includes pulses and lentils which work in many ways to stop cancer

Researchers found out that among the major food group tested, lentils and beans turned out to be most protective for Breast Cancer, while onions, tea, green pepper showed no ability to provide proper protection

Tomatoes

Tomatoes are juicy and taste great. They are important sources of Lycopene. Lycopene is a carotenoid which is responsible for the red hue in tomatoes. But it serves more than the beauty. Lycopene has been found to stop development of endometrial cancer (which kills 8,000 people worldwide, annually!).

This is why you are recommended to devour 2 to 3 of these juicy fruits (or vegetables) if you couldn’t get them in food. However, consider eating cooked tomatoes most of the time since the heat increases the concentration of Lycopene.

Carrots

This cherished vegetable is a great source of beta-carotene which is an antioxidant that prevents cell damage and often slows down the development of cancerous cells. In addition, carrots contain significant concentrations of falcarindiol and falcarinol which are natural pesticides with cancer fighting capabilities.

Spinach

Often dismissed as the low-calorie leafy green, spinach can save lives when consumed in sufficient quantities. Other than the flavonoids, spinach contains folate and fiber. These two elements have been found to be influential in the fight against cancerous cells especially those of the esophagus and the nephrons.

Green tea

There is magic wherever green tea is mentioned. It is a refreshing beverage for most people’s evenings. One least discussed fact about green tea is its cocktail of catechins which have made the green tea a superstar in anti-cancer foods research.

Catechins have proved to be more effective than Vitamin C in managing the free radical damage. Lab studies have shown that green tea is an inhibitor of growth of cancerous cells.

Another added advantage of sipping this delicious beverage is the fact that it significantly reduces the chances of an individual to develop heart disease by lowering the blood pressure if it were shooting up and eliminating cholesterol deposits in blood vessels.

Herbs and Spices

Turmeric contains curcumin as its active ingredient. This compound decreases the size of breast and colon tumors. When used together with the black pepper, the absorption rate, and capability turmeric to fight inflammations increases. Results are even better if curcumin and a combination of herbs such as cayenne pepper basil and oregano.

In a nutshell, eating foods that stop cancer is highly beneficial for your health and increases your chances of staying healthy and living longer. Food listed here is just a tiny proportion of foods that stop cancer out there.

There exist lots of other foods and health supplements derived from a mixture of other foods which are more effective in fighting cancer. At times the information on the food’s capability to fight cancer may be too general to use in decision making about which food to select. You can be a little more inquisitive and consult your personal doctor.