Cancer Fighting Foods

Cancer Fighting Foods

Avocados are rich in glutathione, a powerful antioxidant that attacks free radicals in the body by blocking intestinal absorption of certain fats...They also supply even more potassium than bananas and are a strong source of beta-carotene. Scientists also believe that avocados may also be useful in treating viral hepatitis (a cause of liver cancer), as well as other sources of liver damage.

Oranges and lemons contain Iimonene which stimulates cancer-killing immune cells (lymphocytes, e.g.) that may also break down cancer-causing substances.

Broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower have a chemical component called indole-3-carbinol that can combat breast cancer by converting a cancer-promoting estrogen into a more protective variety. Broccoli, especially sprouts, also have the phytochemical sulforaphane, a product of glucoraphanin - believed to aid in preventing some types of cancer, like colon and rectal cancer.

Carrots contain a lot of beta carotene, which may help reduce a wide range of cancers including lung, mouth, throat, stomach, intestine, bladder, prostate and breast....It is important not to cook the carrots.

Chili peppers and jalapenos contain a chemical, capsaicin, which may neutralize certain cancer-causing substances (nitrosamines) and may help prevent cancers such as stomach cancer.

Cruciferous vegetables - broccoli, cauliflower, kale, Brussels sprouts, and cabbage contain two antioxidants, lutein and zeaxanthin that may help decrease prostate and other cancers.

Figs apparently have a derivative of benzaldehyde. It has been reported that investigators at the Institute of Physical and Chemical Research in Tokyo say benzaldehyde is highly effective at shrinking tumors, though I haven't seen this report. In addition, the U.S. Department of Agriculture says figs, which contain vitamins A and C, and calcium, magnesium and potassium, may curtail appetite and improve weight-loss efforts. Fig juice is also a potent bacteria killer in test-tube studies.

Flax contains lignans, which may have an antioxidant effect and block or suppress cancerous changes. Flax is also high in omega-3 fatty acids, which are thought to protect against colon cancer and heart disease.

Garlic has immune-enhancing allium compounds (dialyl sultides) that appear to increase the activity of immune cells that fight cancer and indirectly help break down cancer causing substances. These substances also help block carcinogens from entering cells and slow tumor development. Diallyl sulfide, a component of garlic oil, has also been shown to render carcinogens in the liver inactive. Studies have linked garlic — as well as onions, leeks, and chives — to lower risk of stomach and colon cancer.

Grapefruits, like oranges and other citrus fruits, contain monoterpenes, believed to help prevent cancer by sweeping carcinogens out of the body.

Grapes, red contain bioflavonoids, powerful antioxidants that work as cancer preventives. Grapes are also a rich source of resveratrol, which inhibits the enzymes that can stimulate cancer-cell growth and suppress immune response.

Kale has indoles, nitrogen compounds which may help stop the conversion of certain lesions to cancerous cells in estrogen-sensitive tissues. In addition, isothiocyanates, phytochemicals found in kale, are thought to suppress tumor growth and block cancer-causing substances from reaching their targets.

Mushrooms - There are a number of mushrooms that appear to help the body fight cancer and build the immune system - Shiitake, maitake, reishi, Agaricus blazei Murill, and Coriolus Versicolor. These mushrooms contain polysaccharides, especially Lentinan, powerful compounds that help in building immunity. They are a source of Beta Glucan. They also have a protein called lectin, which attacks cancerous cells and prevents them from multiplying.

Nuts contain the antioxidants quercetin and campferol that may suppress the growth of cancers.

Papayas have vitamin C that works as an antioxidant and may also reduce absorption of cancer-causing nitrosamines from the soil or processed foods. Papaya contains folacin (also known as folic acid), which has been shown to minimize cervical dysplasia and certain cancers.

Raspberries contain many vitamins, minerals, plant compounds and antioxidants known as anthocyanins that may protect against cancer.

Red wine, even without alcohol, has polyphenols that may protect against various types of cancer. Polyphenols are potent antioxidants, compounds that help neutralize disease-causing free radicals.

Rosemary may help increase the activity of detoxification enzymes. An extract of rosemary, termed carnosol, has inhibited the development of both breast and skin tumors in animals.

Seaweed and other sea vegetables contain beta-carotene, protein, vitamin B12, fiber, and chlorophyll, as well as chlorophylones - important fatty acids that may help in the fight against breast cancer. Many sea vegetables also have high concentrations of the minerals potassium, calcium, magnesium, iron, and iodine.

Soy products like tofu contain several types of phytoestrogens — weak, nonsteroidal estrogens that could help prevent both breast and prostate cancer by blocking and suppressing cancerous changes.

Sweet potatoes contain many anticancer properties, including beta-carotene, which may protect DNA in the cell nucleus from cancer-causing chemicals outside the nuclear membrane.

Teas: Green Tea and Black tea contain certain antioxidants known as polyphenols (catechins) which appear to prevent cancer cells from dividing. Green tea is best, followed by our more common black tea (herbal teas do not show this benefit).

Tapioca is derived from the cassava plant. It is one of the many plants that manufactures cyanide by producing a chemical called linamarine which releases hydrogen cyanide when it is broken down by the linamarase enzyme.

Tomatoes contain lycopene, an antioxidant that attacks roaming oxygen molecules, known as free radicals, that are suspected of triggering cancer. It appears that the hotter the weather, the more lycopene tomatoes produce. They also have vitamin C, an antioxidant which can prevent cellular damage that leads to cancer.

Tumeric (curcuma longa), a member of the ginger family, is believed to have medicinal properties because it inhibits production of the inflammation-related enzyme cyclo-oxygenase 2 (COX-2), levels of which are abnormally high in certain inflammatory diseases and cancers, especially bowel and colon cancer.

In general, consumption of fruits and vegetables has been associated with decreased risk of cancers of the colon and rectum.

Source: http://www. cancure. org/cancer_fighting_foods. htm

What is a "Raw" Diet Anyway??

Several years ago, my good friend Patricia was heading to a nutrition camp in upstate New York for women with Lupus (SLE) and other serious health conditions. I hadn't seen her for about one-year but she constantly spoke of how much better she felt, she was growing thin and increasingly energetic, and her skin was vibrant. Well, that self-report was just as accurate as could be. She must have summoned all the angels in the universe as well, she was glowing and their song just seemed to follow her. She was able to reduce the amount of medications and eventually was able to kick her medications to the curb with the help of physician. Her labs, her health, her overall well being improved dramatically. Is this going to happen for everyone, probably not but it could improve your overall health in so many positive ways.

How did this happen? While Patricia was gone she learned to adopt a raw food diet. She was eating nothing cooked. No pasta, no rice and beans, no steamed broccoli. Not even tofu (made from cooked soybeans). Most raw proponents are also vegan and strive for a high percentage of organic foods. No wonder Patricia looked so thin and healthy, she was eating nothing but fresh fruit, vegetables, nuts and grains. And most of the produce she was growing organic in her Seattle garden. FYI: Planters make excellent gardens too.

The thought behind the raw food lifestyle that is in heating food above 116F degrees destroys important living enzymes and other nutrients. Advocates of raw food believe that by preserving the living elements of the food we eat, degenerative disease is prevented, aging is slowed, energy enhanced, and emotional well-being is boosted.

Before I was diagnosed with Hypothyroidism, I began making the changes to my diet as well by introducing a number of new Veggie recipes. I started slowly by giving up one or two things at a time: beef and pork, then poultry and so on. It was an easy transition as produce was already a primary staple to my daily diet. I was soaking nuts & sprouting beans and grains. I was reading raw cookbooks both online and purchasing from the bookstore to learn even more. I was making juices and loving the new additions to my daily diet.

I haven't lost any weight but I do feel much better. There is no thought of returning to my previous meat eating ways. I love my lifestyle and know that even though my thyroid health is not optimal, my overall health is. My body feels clean, I love the energy and feel refreshed. To be considered a true "raw foodist" you need to only consume 75% raw food in your daily diet. I can easily maintain that high level of raw food daily.

My Favorite Salad:

I was never much of a cook so raw is a perfect match for me. My daily salad consist of an organic spring mix, chopped beats, red onion, yellow squash, cucumber, spouted lentils, grape tomatoes, carrot, green beans or snow peas, avocado .. mixed with a dressing of fresh lemon juice and balsamic vinegar, chopped garlic clove, fresh chopped basil, kosher salt and pepper to taste.

You can add whatever vegetables are in season. I shop primarily at the local Farmers Market to support local farmers but also to keep my costs down. Enjoy eating raw and local grown!!

Foods To Fight High Blood Pressure

There is a natural food pharmacy embraced by Nutritionists and that the answer to a lot of our health problems lies in what we eat.

1. Oriental Medicine practitioners have long used Celery for lowering high blood pressure. There are some experimental evidence that shows that celery is useful for this. In one study, eating as few as four celery stalks was found to be beneficial in lowering blood pressure in human beings.

2. Garlic is a wonder drug for heart. It has beneficial effects in all cardiovascular system including blood pressure. In a study, when people with high blood pressure were given one clove of garlic a day for 12 weeks, their diastolic blood pressure and cholesterol levels were significantly reduced. Eating quantities as small as one clove of garlic a day was found to have beneficial effects on managing hypertension. Use garlic in your cooking, salad, soup, pickles, etc. It is very versatile.

3. Onions are useful in hypertension. What is best is the onion essential oil. Two to three tablespoons of onion essential oil a day was found to lower the systolic levels by an average of 25 points and the diastolic levels by 15 points in hypertension subjects. This should not be surprising because onion is a cousin of garlic.

4. Tomatoes are high in gamma-amino butyric acid (GABA), a compound that can help bring down blood pressure.

5. This vegetable contains several active ingredients that reduce blood pressure.

6. Carrots also contain several compounds that lower blood pressure.

7. Saffron contains a chemical called crocetin that lowers the blood pressure. You can use saffron in your cooking. (It is a very popular spice in Arabic cooking.) You can also make a tea with it. Many Indians add a pinch of saffron in the brewed tea to give a heavenly flavor. Unfortunately, it is very expensive.

8. Spices such as fennel, oregano, black pepper, basil and tarragon have active ingredients that is beneficial in hypertension. Use them in your cooking.

9. Soya beans are believed to reduce levels of harmful blood fats involved in heart diseases, regulate the bowls, stabilise blood sugar levels and combat breast cancer. *Studies have shown that participants drinking soy milk had a significantly greater fall in both systolic and diastolic blood pressure, compared with those drinking cow’s milk.

10. Oats are an excellent source of helping to lower blood pressure and sugar levels. The soluble fibre in oats also helps to remove bile acids involved in the formation of cholesterol.

11. Green and Black Teas. Scientists have discovered that tea has an abundance of phytonutrients, also found in fruit and vegetables, which are antioxidants that defend against cell damage that leads to ageing and diseases such as diabetes, cataracts, heart disease and cancer. The antioxidant activity of tea is more powerful than that found in most fruit and vegetables.

12. Omega-3 & Omega-6 Fatty Acids are found in vegetable oils, nuts, seeds and grains. (almonds, flax seeds, sunflower seeds, walnuts, etc.) Fresh Atlantic Salmon and other fresh fish are good choices as well.

Increased Blood Pressure: a diet high in fat causes thickened blood and blocked arteries increasing the likelihood of cardiovascular disease and other degenerative diseases. According to the American Heart Association: Eating too much saturated fat (meat) can raise your blood cholesterol level, which increases the risk of coronary artery disease (clogged arteries) and heart attack. Plant foods contain no cholesterol. Even lean meats like shrimp and white chicken meat are high in cholesterol.

Tips for reducing your blood pressure:

If your blood pressure is high, reducing your sodium intake is a small lifestyle change that can have a big impact. Other critical measures you take include:

* Losing weight (if you’re overweight or obese)
* Limiting alcohol intake
* Limiting saturated fat in your diet
* Adding more fruits and vegetables to your diet
* Increasing your intake of calcium, magnesium and potassium
* Getting regular exercise
* Reduce Stress (meditate, do yoga, listen to peaceful music)
* Reduce Salt intake (most cheese contains large amounts of sodium)

Best wishes ~ Brenda

Friday, August 22

We wait all these years to find someone who understands us, I thought, someone who accepts us as we are, someone with a wizard's power to melt stone to sunlight, who can bring us happiness in spite of trials, who can face our dragons in the night, who can transform us into the soul we choose to be.

Just yesterday I found that magical Someone is the face we see in the mirror: It's us and our homemade masks.


Have a fantastic weekend!
Namaste ~ Brenda

Tips of the Day

So you have been diagnosed with Hypothyroidism, taking your T4 or T3 replacement and still not feeling your best. Having Hypothyroidism has found me searching for new tricks to help alievate my symptoms. Some of these are just by accident but what a difference it has made to my quality of living.

Constipation ~

2 teaspoons of raw, unfiltered local honey, in the evening one time daily. Begins working within 3 days and everyday thereafter. Forget the honey and your system returns to previous state. I do not know why this works but the result from the metabolism of the sugars in the intestional track is regular bowel movements.

Hair Loss ~

Evening Primrose Oil with Vitamin E 1000 mg daily (Nature Made). My hair stopped falling out within 2 days, it is softer instead of straw like, and does not knot as before. Also helps to alievate PMS symptoms and perimenopause symptoms.

Dry Skin ~

Pure Olive Oil applied daily following your shower. Organic Cranberry Essential Oil is also used for dry skin.

Health Problems for Oprah ~ by Kaayla T. Daniel, PhD

You'll find Dr. Daniel's story below, but first my thoughts:

Soy is perceived as a "health food" in the United States, raking in $4 billion a year. Many people consume soy because of the claims that it can reduce the risk of heart disease, alleviate symptoms of menopause, lower cholesterol and even cut the cancer risk.

But in reality, when people consume soy products it can eventually lead to health problems ranging from digestive upset and bloating to hormonal distruption. And among infants, the estrogens in soy formula can be devastating, causing problems in their brains, reporductive systems and thyroid glands.

There are 100 years worth of studies demonstrating that soy products can be hazardous to your health, but soy is nonetheless now everywhere in our food supply, often hidden in the processed foods.

Soy as it is traditionally consumed in Asian diets (mostly fermented soy products; miso, natto, and tempeh) is much less problematic. The fermented forms are safer since the fermentation process creates health-promoting probiotics. Aslo, soy in Asia is consumed only in small amounts, an average of 9 grams per day verses over 20 grams a day in the US.

Have you ever looked at cows who recieved both soy and corn as the primary food source? They gain huge amounts of weight in a very short time. When an experiment was done on cows being feed coconut oil, the farmers were shocked to find that the cows lost weight ... the farmers returned to feeding their cattle soy and corn, both genetically enhanced.

Enjoy the article below

Brenda
http://www.coachbrenda2.blogspot.com/

Health Problems for Oprah--The Link Between Soy and Thyroid Disease

Board certified clinical nutritionist Kaayla T. Daniel, PhD is available for comment about potential thyroid damage from so-called “healthy foods”

Washington, DC 10/03/2007 11:35 AM GMT (FINDITT)

Oprah Winfrey's recent announcement on Good Morning America that she "blew out" her thyroid brings much needed attention to the underreported epidemic of thyroid disease in this country. As Oprah consistently sings the praises of soy to her viewers, it raises the question of whether her frequent consumption of soy milk and other soy products is the cause of her recent diagnosis.

“More than 70 years of studies link soy to thyroid disorders,” says Kaayla Daniel, PhD, CCN, and author of the book, The Whole Soy Story: The Dark Side of America's Favorite Health Food. “Oprah has long touted the health benefits of soy, but the myth that soy is a healthy food has had tragic consequences, especially for women in the throes of menopause,” says Daniel. “The phytoestrogens found in soy products are potent inhibitors of thyroid peroxidase, the enzyme the body needs to produce the essential thyroid hormones T3 and T4.”

Dr. Daniel is one of a growing number of leading scientists, physicians and toxicologists from around the world who has raised alarms about consumption of soy products high in phytoestrogens causing significant endocrine disruption and thyroid damage.

“Women in mid-life are already at risk for developing thyroid problems,” Daniel states. “To make matters worse, the soy industry heavily markets soy milk and other soy products to women who are menopausal as an effective and safe method of hormone replacement therapy. The truth is that it is neither effective nor safe.”

Studies by the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality have concluded that the evidence for soy preventing or alleviating menopausal symptoms is inconsistent and contradictory at best. Still, many women continue to flock to soy products due to popular books heavily marketed by Oprah and other celebrities as an alternative to traditional HRT therapies.

Christiane Northrup, MD, author of the bestseller The Wisdom of Menopause is one of many consultants to the stars. Although Dr. Northrup is a leader in body/mind therapies, her advice to embrace the use of products containing high levels of phytoestrogens has misled many women. According to her newsletter, Northrup has worked with Oprah privately to help her with menopause. "Given her own avowed consumption of these products, it's probably no accident that Dr. Northrup herself has been diagnosed with hypothyroidism,” says Daniel.

The United Kingdom's Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and Environment has identified several populations at special risk for soy-induced thyroid disease – infants on soy formula, vegans who use soy as their principal meat and dairy replacements, and men and women who use isoflavone supplements in an attempt to prevent or protect against cancer and high cholesterol.

“Now that Oprah has joined the ranks of women suffering from thyroid disease, it is my hope she will alert her audience to the very real dangers of excess consumption of soy based products,” Daniel concludes. “The proven risks far outweigh the possible benefits.”

Kaayla T. Daniel, PhD, CCN, is THE WHOLE NUTRITIONIST®. She earned her PhD in Nutritional Sciences and Anti-Aging Therapies from the Union Institute and University in Cincinnati, is board certified as a clinical nutritionist (CCN) by the International and American Association of Clinical Nutritionists in Dallas and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Weston A. Price Foundation. As a clinical nutritionist, she specializes in digestive disorders, women’s reproductive health issues, infertility, and recovery from vegetarian and soy-based diets.

Dr. Daniel is the author of The Whole Soy Story: The Dark Side of America’s Favorite Health Food (New Trends, March 2005), which has been endorsed by leading health professionals, including Kilmer McCully MD, Doris J. Rapp MD, Jonathan V. Wright, MD, Russell Blaylock, MD, Larrian Gillespie, MD, Joseph Mercola, OD, Debra Lynn Dadd and Larry Dossey, MD, who called it “science writing at its best.”

If you live in the Phoenix Area and enjoy organic produce ...

If you are looking for fresh, local grown organic produce throughout the year visit:

http://www.chef-to-chef.com/

Chef-to-Chef drops off rather large paper bags of "in season" produce at 7 valley locations (Tempe, Phoenix (3), Sun City, Peoria) Friday mornings 9am to 11am. Each bag cost $25.00.

I picked my first bag up today, WOW ... I had carrots, cluster tomatoes, head of purple cabbage, butter squash, leeks, whole cantaloupe, peaches, sweet basil, arugula, green beans, baby cucumbers, red and yellow onions. This was a hearty bag of ORGANIC local grown produce.

Also, if you live in the East Valley don't forget about "The Farm at Agritopia" in Gilbert ... the Johnson Families urban produce farm will not open again until October. The Farm has also combined with Scott Farms, so lots of organic produce to chose from in the coming months. They are preparing the land now and will start planting very soon. You can visit year around and will find Joe's Farm Grill and The Coffee Shop. I always get my produce then have breakfast in The Coffee Shop ... yummy yummy!!

Great places to visit !!
Enjoy your summer
Brenda