Our diet is closely related to our physical health. Many people ask what to eat when they are sick, but in fact, we should learn to use diet to prevent diseases before they appear. Cancer is a heavy term, not a common disease, and we seldom pay attention to it in our daily lives. Only when something in our life is directly related to these two words do we face it head-on, but preventing cancer is more important than treating it. Research has found that an improper diet can cause cancer, while a proper diet can prevent and fight cancer. So, which foods can prevent and fight cancer?
Braised Beef Brisket
I. Animal-based Anti-Cancer Foods
1. Fish Oil: Research has found that eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) in fish oil has anti-cancer properties. This substance is a polyunsaturated fatty acid. It is mainly found in the fish oil of fatty fish, such as sardine oil, herring oil, and salmon oil. Studies have shown that when tumor cells break down human fat tissue and protein components, they produce a tumor factor that promotes tumor growth. The eicosapentaenoic acid in fish oil can stop the activity of this tumor factor, thereby preventing tumor growth.
2. Fish Scales: Immunologists have confirmed that fish scales play an important role in cancer prevention. If leukocytes from fish scales are implanted into cancerous mice, their tumor cells can disappear. The anti-cancer drug β-thioguanine is made from fish scales. The effective rate of using this drug to treat leukemia is over 70%. In addition, this drug has a good effect on treating stomach cancer and lymphoma.
3. Beef: A team of microbiologists discovered that beef contains a component that can inhibit the mutagenic activity of carcinogens. Therefore, beef has anti-cancer properties. This team is trying to extract a new anti-cancer drug from beef.
II. Plant-based Anti-Cancer Foods
1. Jujube: In recent years, it has been discovered that the hot water extract of jujube can inhibit tumor cells cultured in vitro, with an inhibition rate of up to 90%. However, this extract also has a slight inhibitory effect on normal cells. This inhibitory characteristic is related to the dosage of the extract. The anti-cancer effect of jujube is related to its rich content of cyclic adenosine monophosphate and vitamins.
2. Dark Plum: The fruit of dark plum contains effective substances such as malic acid, citric acid, succinic acid, β-sitosterol, cerin, and triterpenes. Animal experiments have shown that these components in dark plum can enhance the ability of white blood cells in mice to swallow toxic substances, improve the immune function of the mouse body, and have a certain inhibitory effect on mouse subcutaneous sarcoma. Therefore, dark plum can be used as an adjunctive treatment for diseases such as cervical cancer.
3. Tomato: Lycopene in tomatoes (tomatoes) has anti-cancer properties. Lycopene is an antioxidant. This substance is found in tomatoes, watermelons, and almonds. It can eliminate oxygen free radicals in the human body that induce cancer. If the content of lycopene in a person's blood is too low, their risk of pancreatic cancer will greatly increase. Research has found that people with low levels of lycopene in their blood are five times more likely to develop pancreatic cancer than normal people.
4. Garlic: Garlic contains multiple anti-cancer substances. Animal experiments have shown that these anti-cancer substances can inhibit carcinogens related to organs such as the colon, stomach, liver, and lungs. A study by the University of Pennsylvania in the United States showed that feeding mice with garlic extract could reduce the incidence of breast cancer by 71%. Not long ago, German scientists also discovered that allicin in garlic has a toxic effect on malignant tumors. Garlic can also inhibit the growth of cancer cells by enhancing the body's immune function. Studies have also shown that the sulfides in garlic can enhance the anti-cancer activity of macrophages and T lymphocytes.
5. Radish: Radish contains mustard oil. Mustard oil is the source of its spicy flavor. Mustard oil and the enzymes in radish interact with each other, promoting gastrointestinal peristalsis, increasing appetite, and aiding digestion. In recent years, research has found that radish can fight cancer. The reasons are: ① Radish contains multiple enzymes that can eliminate carcinogenic nitrosamines in the human body; ② The lignin in radish can enhance the vitality of macrophages, enabling macrophages to swallow cancerous cells.
6. Rice Bran: Rice bran contains a polysaccharide substance called "RBS". It may become an immunotherapeutic drug to prevent the proliferation of cancer cells. This new substance "RBS" is extracted by Japanese scientists from rice bran using boiling water. They first remove the oil, starch, and protein from the rice bran, and then use alcohol to precipitate "RBS". Researchers used this new drug on white mice with lung cancer and skin cancer, and found that "RBS" could improve the immunity of the mice, and its therapeutic effect was better than existing anti-cancer drugs.
7. Wheat Bran: Eating wheat bran can reduce the risk of colon cancer. An experiment in New York proved that people with precancerous colon polyps who ate 2 ounces (1 ounce = 28.3495 grams) of wheat bran products daily for 6 months saw their precancerous colon polyps shrink. The fact that such a small amount of wheat bran product can have such a significant effect in such a short time shows that wheat bran has a good effect in preventing cancer progression.
8. Soybeans: More and more research results show that soybeans have anti-cancer effects, especially in preventing breast cancer, colon cancer, rectal cancer, and esophageal cancer. An animal experiment at the University of Alabama in the United States found that as long as 5% of soybeans are in the diet, it can greatly inhibit the chemical factors that induce breast cancer in rats. A study by Cincinnati Children's Hospital found that if menopausal women eat soy and its products, it can have a good effect on their endocrine system, thereby preventing breast cancer. A Harvard University study found that eating tofu regularly can reduce the risk of colon cancer by 50%. The National Cancer Institute of the United States is looking for anti-cancer factors in soybeans. In animal experiments, they have found five anti-cancer compounds in soybeans. In addition, fermented preparations of soybean dregs—composite riboflavin (Weimeisu)—also have a certain effect in preventing esophageal epithelial hyperplasia and reducing the incidence of esophageal cancer.
9. Vegetable Anti-Cancer Foods: The National Cancer Research Institute of Japan recently conducted a statistical survey on the relationship between the eating habits of 260,000 people and cancer. The results proved that vegetables have anti-cancer effects. Through the analysis of anti-cancer components and anti-cancer experiments on more than 40 kinds of vegetables, it was confirmed that 20 kinds of vegetables have a significant inhibitory effect on tumor cells. They are: cooked sweet potato, raw sweet potato, asparagus, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, celery, eggplant skin, sweet pepper, carrot, daylily, shepherds purse, kohlrabi, mustard, pickled Chinese cabbage, tomato, garlic, green onion, cucumber, Chinese cabbage, etc.
In conclusion, a reasonable diet, paying attention to nutritional balance, eating less fried food, smoked food, pickled products, moldy food and food containing additives, plus quitting smoking and alcohol, and regular exercise, can certainly prevent the occurrence of cancer or stop its development.
Red calf