Nutrition for Cancer Prevention

What we eat throughout our life, how active we are, as well as our genes, all affect our overall health and risk of degenerative diseases. Cancer, cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and other non-communicable diseases all occur more frequently as we age. Many of these conditions can be improved with a physically active lifestyle and by eating healthily.

Two positive improvements you can make right now:

  • Decide to increase the amount of walking, swimming or other physical activity you will do with a goal of being active at least 45 minutes every day.
  • Decide to increase the amount of colorful and aromatic vegetables and fruits by one serving or more each day. Aim for 8-10 servings each day; start by adding one more such as sprinkling some blueberries on your breakfast cereal or yogurt in the morning.

Food is appealing for many different reasons. The taste, texture and appearance are important factors in choosing foods. When you select food that is fresh, well prepared and attractively presented then you are usually also selecting dishes that are providing you with the three A’s of cancer prevention - antioxidants, anti-inflammatories and anticarcinogens.

In health, cell repair or renewal protects against mutations that alter normal cell processing and can cause cancer; however this requires a consistent intake of nutritious food. If you have been diagnosed with cancer, good nutrition provides a practical and useful way to participate in your own recovery and it is empowering for you to know that you are doing all you can to assist your medical team in restoring your health.

Foods that provide nutrients to protect DNA from damage:

  • Vitamin C rich foods – citrus, strawberries, kiwi fruit, bell peppers
  • Vitamin E rich foods – nuts, seeds, egg yolk, wheat germ High ORAC scoring fruits and vegetables; Açai, Goji, pomegranate, blueberries, spinach

Foods that provide nutrients that enhance DNA stability and repair:

  • High folate foods – green leafy vegetables, whole grains, lean meat
  • Zinc rich foods – oysters, liver, sunflower seeds
  • Magnesium rich foods – leafy vegetables, nuts, seafood

Foods that provide nutrients that prevent excessive cell turnover and enhance removal of carcinogens:

  • Oily fish such as salmon and sardines rich in omega-3’s and Vitamin D Natural salicylates rich foods such as apricots, culinary herbs and spices Green tea, red grapes and cocoa
  • Cruciferous vegetables – cabbage family including cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, mustard, kale and watercress
  • Allium vegetables – garlic family including onions, leeks, chives, scallions and shallots

Vegetables, beans and fruit are rich sources of protective chemicals sometimes called phyto- (from the Greek word for plant) chemicals or botanical factors. They are antioxidant, antiproliferative and anticarcinogenic.

There are no magic bullet nutrients or herbs, however many people feel more confident when they make a conscious effort to eat at least one food at each meal that provides the extra protective effect as described above. The American Cancer Society has many excellent nutrition ideas and cookbooks available from their website www.cancer.org.

This article was provided by Carolyn Katzin, MS, CNS.