Alternative Cancer Prevention Diet

Vitamin Vitality

2007-01-09T20:41:32Z

When Mark Masthay shines light on vegetable molecules to learn more about lung cancer, he's continuing research that began when he forgot to keep that same chemical in the dark.

Mark was a grad student then, at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, experimenting with beta carotene - the compound that gives carrots their color, so it was a bright orange liquid when Masthay took it to the chemistry lab one morning. Finding the lab occupied, he took the solution back to his desk and put it by a window.

After 45 minutes of sunlight, "it had turned totally colorless," said Masthay, now the University of Dayton's chemistry department chairman. "And it was irreversible. It didn't come back."

That accident illustrated something important about the way vitamins and other nutrients affect our health. It all depends on context. Beta carotene, for example, can be harmful by itself but healthy in a carrot, or harmful in the lungs but healthy in the eyes.

Like beta carotene, the vitamin C and E complexes in fruits and vegetables are known anti-oxidants. They slow down the natural oxidation of cells that's implicated in heart disease, some cancers and weakened immune function. But most vitamins C and E in dietary supplements tend to increase oxidation, not inhibit it. Read more about vitamins and minerals that help fight cancer in Dr. Hull's cancer prevention diet.

From Cancercompass News: Cancer Nutrition.

Exercise Lowers Colon Cancer Risk

2006-12-18T18:17:32Z

Keeping physically active can significantly cut the risk of colon cancer, international research shows. Scientists analysed data from 413,000 people in 10 European countries, and found physically active people were 22% less likely to develop the disease.

They said an hour a day of vigorous physical activity or two hours of moderate activity would be enough to reduce the risk.

Read more at BBC News | Health | UK Edition.

Obesity Ups Risk for Colon, Throat Cancers

2005-05-20T00:51:35Z

Obesity is associated with an increased risk of colorectal cancer, while obesity and smoking both raise the odds for throat malignancies, two new studies find.

In the first study, University of Tokyo researchers examined the effect of body mass index (BMI) -- a standard measure of obesity -- on colorectal cancer risk. They also evaluated whether weight reduction lowered the risk of colorectal cancer. [Yahoo! News - Health]

Not All Calcium-fortified Foods Provide Same Benefits

2005-05-20T00:49:59Z

Millions of consumers who buy calcium-fortified products to get more calcium into their diets may be in for a surprise. According to research conducted by Robert P. Heaney, M.D., professor of medicine at Creighton University Medical Center, calcium-fortified products, typically orange juice, differ substantially in the way the calcium is absorbed by the body. According to Heaneys research, which is published in this months Journal of the American Dietetic Association, the addition of calcium to a product does not guarantee that the consumer is getting the full benefit of what is on the label. It depends on the absorbability of the added calcium. Previous research by Heaney, holder of the John A. Creighton University Professorship, sho... [Cancercompass News: Cancer Nutrition]

Laughter May Be the Best Medicine

2005-05-13T20:47:31Z

In hospitals, nursing homes and private clubs all around the country, "certified laughter leaders" are teaching the therapeutic value of mirth, not by telling jokes, but simply pretending to laugh, so that forced hee-hee-hees eventually become honest-to-goodness giggles. [ABC News: Health]

Green tea shown to prevent prostate cancer

2005-05-13T20:43:47Z

Taking a concentrated version of green tea prevented prostate cancer in a group of men at a high risk of developing the disease in a new study. [cancerfacts.com]

Processed meats linked to pancreatic cancer

2005-05-13T20:43:22Z

Eating lots of hot dogs, sausages and luncheon meats, along with other forms of processed meat, may boost your risk of pancreatic cancer say researchers. [cancerfacts.com]

Eat Your Fruits And Vegetables: Broccoli Rabe High In Cancer-fighting Properties

2005-05-13T20:34:50Z

Broccoli rabe by any other name is still ... a leafy green. But broccoli rabe (pronounced "rahb") is also known is broccoli raab, rapini, turnip broccoli, Italian or Chinese broccoli, broccoli rape and Italian turnip. Despite its name (or most of its names, anyway), broccoli rabe is actually related to turnips and cabbage. The vegetable makes frequent appearances in Italian and Asian cooking, but is growing in popularity in this country. Boiling, along with pairing the green with other assertive flavors, helps mellow broccoli rabe's bitter bite. How to choose them: Look for small stems with firm, green heads. When to find them: You'll find broccoli rabe in early spring and late fall. Where to put the... [Cancercompass News: Cancer Nutrition]

Carrot Anticancer Agent Identified

2005-05-13T20:34:21Z

Researchers have found that a diet rich in carrots provides anticancer benefits due to the activity of the chemical falcarinol, a natural pesticide, which carrots produce to defend themselves against fungal diseases. Investigators from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne (UK) and the University of Southern Denmark (Odense) used a rat model to study the effect of carrots and falcarinol on tumor development. Twenty-four male BDIX rats were treated with azoxymethane (AOM) to induce formation of preneoplastic lesions of the colon. The animals were then separated into three groups of eight animals each. The control group received ordinary feed, the second group received feed supplemented with 10% (w/w) freeze-dried carrots with a natural co... [Cancercompass News: Cancer Nutrition]

Green Vegetables May Decrease Colon Cancer Risk

2005-05-13T20:31:32Z

"Diets high in red meat and low in green vegetables are associated with increased colon cancer risk. This association might be partly due to the heme content of red meat. In rats, dietary heme is metabolized in the gut to a cytotoxic factor that increases colonic cytotoxicity and epithelial proliferation. "Green vegetables contain chlorophyll, a magnesium porphyrin structurally analogous to heme. We studied whether green vegetables inhibit the unfavorable colonic effects of heme," researchers in the Netherlands report. "First, rats were fed a purified control diet or purified diets supplemented with 0.5 mmol heme/kg, spinach (chlorophyll concentration 1.2 mmol/kg) or heme plus spinach (n=8/group) for 14 days. In a second experiment... [Cancercompass News: Cancer Nutrition]

Garlic May Prevent Colon Cancer

2005-05-13T20:30:23Z

Garlic may be useful in controlling colon cancer, a research team at Japan's Hiroshima University has found. A constituent contained in garlic was found to be effective in controlling the growth of polyps, which are often responsible for colon cancer, the Mainichi Shimbun reported Thursday. The research was conducted on 12 people who had been found to have polyps in their colons during endoscope examinations. The subjects were given an extract obtained by maturing garlic in oil for two years. Eight people in one group were given an average of 0.08 ounce of the extract a day, and the remaining four people were given 0.005 ounce. After one year, the polyps of five people in the first group had decreased, and the av... [Cancercompass News: Cancer Nutrition]

Too Little Magnesium Tied to Artery Troubles

2005-05-13T20:29:44Z

Not having enough magnesium in your diet may increase your chances of developing coronary artery disease, study findings suggest.

In a study of 2,977 men and women, researchers used ultrafast computed tomography (CT scans) of the chest to assess the participants' coronary artery calcium levels. Measurements were taken at the start of the study -- when the participants were 18 to 30 years old -- and again 15 years later. [MedicineNet Weekly News Digest]

Vitamin B6 Cuts Colon Cancer Risk

2005-05-13T20:24:35Z

High daily levels of vitamin B6 may reduce the risk of getting colon cancer by 58 percent, claims a new study from Harvard Medical School. [MedicineNet Weekly News Digest]

Men's prostate cancer may come from mom

2005-04-21T21:11:30Z

Can men inherit risk for a uniquely male disease from their moms?

New research raises that odd possibility. Emory University scientists think they have found a gene that predisposes men to prostate cancer in parts of a cell that come exclusively from mothers, who obviously don't have prostates. [All Headline News - Cancer News and Headlines]

Calcium May Protect Women From Colorectal Cancer

2005-02-23T20:55:47Z

A University of Minnesota Cancer Center study found that women consuming more than 800 milligrams of calcium each day reduced their risk of colorectal cancer by as much as 26 to 46%. A 26% reduction in risk of colorectal cancer occurred regardless of whether the calcium intake was from diet or supplement. Among women who consumed high levels of calcium from diet and supplements, the risk reduction almost double than that observed for calcium from either source by itself. The results of the study appear in this month's Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention journal. Andrew Flood, PhD, epidemiologist with the University of Minnesota Cancer Center and School of Public Health, led the study in collaboration with the National Cance... [Cancercompass News: Cancer Nutrition]