Introduction: Improper diet can lead to cancer, but eating the right foods can also prevent it. Not long ago, Huang Zhijie, an associate researcher at Hubei College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, pointed out during a lecture in Shenzhen that anti-cancer and cancer-preventing substances are not lacking in nature; they are widely found in natural foods.
Currently, vegetables recognized internationally and domestically for their anti-cancer effects are, in order: sweet potato, asparagus, cabbage, cauliflower, celery, eggplant, beet, carrot, shepherd's purse, enoki mushroom, pickled mustard green, and Chinese cabbage. Fruits are, in order: papaya, strawberry, orange, tangerine, kiwi, mango, apricot, persimmon, tomato, and watermelon. Huang Zhijie specifically introduced 10 foods with anti-cancer effects.
1. Carrot
Carrot is a nutritious food in daily life. In recent years, both domestic and international reports have highlighted the prominent anti-cancer effects of carrots.
Research has found that people deficient in vitamin A have a cancer incidence rate more than twice that of normal people. Eating a certain amount of carrots daily is very beneficial for preventing cancer. Because the carotene rich in carrots can be converted into a large amount of vitamin A, it can effectively prevent the occurrence of lung cancer, and even has the effect of stopping the progression or reversing already transformed cancer cells.
Research has also found that carrots contain a relatively high amount of folic acid, which also has anti-cancer properties. The lignin they contain can increase the body's immune capacity by 2-3 times, thereby indirectly inhibiting or eliminating carcinogens and cancer cells in the body. In addition, the molybdenum in carrots can also prevent and fight cancer. Therefore, eating carrots regularly can prevent cancer.
Carrot and Bean Curd Stir-fry
2. Cauliflower
Huang Zhijie believes that the anti-cancer effect of cauliflower first lies in its indole substances, which can lower the level of estrogen in the human body and prevent breast cancer; and indole derivatives such as aromatic isothiocyanate and dithioketone can resist the toxicity of carcinogens like benzopyrene.
This time, cauliflower contains an enzyme substance—radish seed glucosinolate, which can inactivate carcinogens and reduce the incidence of gastrointestinal and respiratory tract cancers. Therefore, nutritional medicine believes that women with stomach problems, especially those with a family history of breast cancer, can eat more cauliflower to prevent the occurrence of stomach and breast cancer. In addition, cauliflower contains relatively high amounts of dietary fiber, vitamin C, carotene, and trace elements, all of which have anti-cancer effects.
Cauliflower can also prevent prostate cancer. American studies have found that eating cruciferous vegetables reduces the risk of prostate cancer in men. However, to exert its anti-cancer effect, cauliflower must be chewed.
A Japanese experiment has shown that the anti-cancer rate of polysaccharides in shiitake mushrooms is 80%-95%, and it has significant therapeutic effects on various malignant tumors such as leukemia, esophageal cancer, stomach cancer, intestinal cancer, lung cancer, and liver cancer.
Stir-fried Cauliflower with Douchu and Bacon
3. Mushrooms
Shiitake mushrooms contain a substance called "β-glucosidase," which can enhance the body's anti-cancer effect. A Japanese experiment has shown that the anti-cancer rate of polysaccharides in shiitake mushrooms is 80%-95%, and it has significant therapeutic effects on various malignant tumors such as leukemia, esophageal cancer, stomach cancer, intestinal cancer, lung cancer, and liver cancer.
In addition, in the early stages of cancer, eating shiitake mushrooms consistently can inhibit its development, and even make it disappear. This is because shiitake mushrooms not only contain polysaccharides but also contain an interferon inducer—double-stranded RNA, which can enter cancer cells and inhibit their proliferation. After various cancer surgeries, continued consumption of shiitake mushrooms can also prevent the metastasis of cancer cells.
The stem of enoki mushroom contains a protein that can stimulate the body's natural anti-cancer mechanism in cervical cancer patients, enabling patients to rely on their own immune system to fight cancer cells. Pine mushrooms contain more than ten effective anti-cancer components, among which pine mushroom polysaccharide is currently the strongest known stimulant of helper T lymphocytes. It can effectively inhibit the growth of cancer cells and has strong anti-radiation, anti-tumor activity, the ability to protect the body's cells from damage by radioactive substances, and the ability to inhibit the proliferation of tumor cells. It can also absorb and excrete carcinogens, preventing chemical, radiation, and viral carcinogenesis.
Steamed Prawns with Enoki Mushroom in Scallion Oil
4. Sweet Potato
Among 20 vegetables that have a significant inhibitory effect on tumor cells, sweet potato ranks first, with a tumor inhibition rate of 98.7% for cooked sweet potatoes and 94.4% for raw ones.
Researchers have found that sweet potatoes contain anti-cancer substances that inhibit the growth of cancer cells, called glycolipids; sweet potatoes also contain an active substance called dehydroepiandrosterone, which can inhibit and kill cancer cells and can rejuvenate a weakened immune system, preventing and treating breast and colon cancer.
Roasted Sweet Potato
5. Grape
Grape is a very good fruit; its skin and seeds are a natural compound that can lower cholesterol and reduce platelet aggregation. Aspirin was inspired by grapes, so it has certain medicinal properties.
Grapes have strong anti-cancer properties because resveratrol they contain can prevent healthy cells from becoming cancerous and inhibit the spread of already cancerous cells. Resveratrol has been found in more than 70 plants, including grapes, mulberries, and peanuts, but the highest content is in grapes and grape products.
Wine has excellent anti-aging and disease-preventing effects. The content of grapes in wine is the highest, so it contains resveratrol, which has relatively strong anti-cancer properties and can inhibit the spread of cancer cells.
All wines contain a certain amount of resveratrol, with the highest content in red wine. Therefore, regular consumption of red wine has a certain anti-cancer effect.
Grapefruit and Apple Juice