The Top 10 anti-cancer foods
The most powerful anti-cancer food of all is, of course, a daily helping of seafood - for the complete range of the 72+ natural trace elements, without which we cannot help but sicken - and worse.
The complete natural range of the 72 trace elements is the best anti-cancer food there is. This is the reason why the breast cancer rate is 21 times lower, the lung cancer rate is 36 times lower, the prostate cancer rate is 137 time lower, and the colon cancer rate 187 times lower among the Sinhalese, and most likely, the people of India as well. Unlike Sri Lanka, India does not have a public health care system, hence the lack of figures for India.
Nevertheless, the nutritional customs are all but identical in these two countries, and while some Indian agriculture has switched to the trace element deficient Western chemical methods, much of their agriculture still returns all life wastes to the soil - and with them, the 72 trace elements. And China is not far behind the Sinhalese, with basically the same agricultural situation.
So, since seafood is the only readily available food hereabouts which still contains the complete natural range of the 72 nutritional elements, a daily helping of seafood is your most powerful and most effective weapon against cancer.
As told in these pages, our modern agriculture only maintains only 8 [yes, only eight] trace elements in its soils and product, and hence in our daily food. This leaves us with a massive trace element deficiency of about 64 trace elements in our regular food - which is the cause of a great many diseases, including many kinds of cancer.
And while this is terrible enough, we’ve made it worse. Our refined foods - white flour, white sugar, white rice, and all their products - loose a huge chunk of what little remains of the 64 already deficient trace elements in the refining process. And chief among them is chromium, now recognized as a crucially important and potent anti-cancer trace element. Alas, our modern agriculture has never even heard of chromium.
Further, all commercially prepared foods in which the water they have been cooked in is discarded, loose another chunk of the 64 already severely deficient trace elements. Exactly the same is true for our home cooking, when we discard the water we’ve boiled our potatoes, carrots, peas, broccoli, spinach, green beans, etc. in.
So, to reinforce your body further against cancer, only use whole grain flours, dark brown sugar or molasses, only whole grain rice - and all the products derived therefrom, such as whole grain bread, pastries, pasta, cake and pancake mixes, and so forth.
Then, in your cooking either save the water you’ve boiled your vegetables in, to make a soup, or change your cooking method of vegetables to that of cooking in a Chinese wok, with no or very little water, and where all the juices are retained. Also, cooking your vegetables wok-style in a bit of chicken, beef or vegetable stock (just a few tablespoons), or bouillon, is a wonderful way of preparing delicious vegetables. When done, and if there is some liquid left, just thicken it a bit with a bit of cornstarch, and you have a delicious vegetable sauce to go with your vegetables. [use only uncoated stainless steel cooking ware, as Teflon is toxic, and aluminum causes
Most importantly though, you also retain what little still remains of the 64 severely deficient trace elements - all of which are still unknown to our modern agriculture.
Salt can increase cancer risk: Eating highly salted food can double a person’s risk of stomach cancer, from 1:1000 to 1:500, says an online report published in the British Journal of Cancer (www.bjcancer.com). The study looked at 40 000 Japanese men over an 11 year period and took account of smoking and drinking habits as well as diet.
And yes, use only organic produce as much as you can. While even the organic growers also know zilch about the vital importance of the 72 trace elements in their soils and produce, at least they grow their crops without herbi- pesti - bacteria- and fungicides. This adds another staunch weapon to your arsenal against cancer - and, by the way, a whole raft of other diseases.
The Ontario College of Physicians has advised all people to get rid of all pesti- herbi- bacteria- and fungicides in your household and gardens. A just completed meta-study, covering 250 papers on the subject of these -cides has shown that these poisons are strongly implicated in several cancers, and other reproductive and mental diseases - Parkinson’s among them. Worse, due to their much smaller body mass (as frequently mentioned in these pages) children are affected far more severely than adults - and the smaller the worse - resulting in mental and physical development problems and learning disabilities.
So, get rid of all those -cides in your household and gardens, and the sooner the better. And dig up those dandelions, for instance, instead of poisoning them - and ultimately yourself and your loved ones. It’s great exercise, and young dandelions are delicious in salads, and very rich in nutrients, including a 10 times higher vitamin C content than oranges.
Tomatoes. Besides loads of vitamin C, tomatoes are one of the richest sources of the flavenoid lycopene - which gives them their red colour - which has shown to defend, in study after study, against cancers of the lungs, cervix, prostate and mouth. Tomatoes are also one of the chief ingredients of “the Mediterranean diet”, now well known for the many important health benefits it conveys.
Blueberries. In addition to plenty of flavenoids - the rich pigment of the berries - which has repeatedly shown to protect against several cancers, blueberries may also hold “the secret of youth”. In a study published in Journal of Neuroscience, investigators found that elderly rats fed the human equivalent of at least 1/2 cup of blueberries per day, improved in balance, coordination and short term memory. A normal serving consists of one cup. Like other fruits and vegetables - and particularly so the ‘dark’ ones - blueberries contain chemicals that act as antioxidants, now believed by scientists to protect the body against “oxidative stress,” one of several biological processes that cause aging.
Red Cabbage, Red Beets. All cabbages - including their kin broccoli, cauliflower, kale, brussel sprouts bok choy, and so forth - are not only rich in calcium, but recent research has shown that they are also extremely rich in anti-cancer flavenoids, the source of the purple colour of the red cabbages. But the red cabbage tops them all; it is the richest source of flavenoids among all vegetables, besides red beets, of course. Red beets have so much of these flavenoids that it can alarm people who are not used to them, because it turns urine red. But there is no reason to panic, it’s just the abundance of the potent flavenoids in red beets.
Spinach. Also one of the “dark” vegetables, spinach is also a rich source of vitamin C, beta-carotene - both are potent antioxidants - as well as folic acid, now discovered to be so vital to our health that the US Dept. of Health has mandated that it is added to flour. In several studies (University of Minnesota, Environmental Health Services, and others), it has been found that people who include two or more servings of spinach per week in their nutrition have considerably lower lung and breast cancer rates.
Garlic. Studies focused on garlic have shown, again and again, that this pungent onion kin lives up to its age-old reputation of being a powerful all-around health promoting food. The sulphur compounds that give it its strong flavour have now been shown to protect against cancer by neutralizing carcinogens and slowing tumor growth. In a recent Iowa Women’s Health study, investigators found that women who consume garlic at least once a week also have a 32% lower incidence of breast cancer. Garlic is, of course, also a major ingredient in the now well known “Mediterranean diet”.
Whole Wheat. In a recent study at the University of Iowa, scientist found that the more whole grain there is in a woman’s diet, the lower her risk of breast cancer, as well as heart disease. In this study, as well as an analysis of 40 other studies on 20 kinds of cancer, investigators established that consumers of whole wheat products (bread, pasta, cereals) have a 33% lower risk of these diseases than those who do not eat whole wheat products.
Oranges. Already well known for their high vitamin C content, much recent research in the food sciences has shown that oranges are also rich in many other potent anti-cancer compounds. Investigators have now found that oranges contain more than 170 photochemicals, including more than 20 from the potent carotenoid family alone. In addition, compounds called limonoids - which give citrus fruit their slightly bitter taste - appear to be highly active anti-cancer agents as well. Regular consumption of oranges is associated with significantly lower lung and stomach cancers.
Strawberries. In a study tracking the diet and health of 1.271 people, researchers at the Harvard School of Health found that people who love strawberries have a 70% lower incidence of cancer. But, and as many other studies have shown, the same holds true for all other colourful and deeply coloured berries, such as cranberries, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, red and purple grapes, and so forth.
Beans. Much recent research in the food sciences has established that all kinds of beans are loaded with protease inhibitors, compounds that make it hard for cancer cells to invade adjacent tissue. Fava beans contain much herein, which has shown to block carcinogens in the digestive tract. And soy beans are especially rich in isoflavones, which appears to reduce the risk of breast cancer by blocking the tumor-growing influence of estrogen. Lentils also belong to the bean family, and are one of the tastiest, most versatile, and easiest to prepare beans.