I just went for another Body Scan last week.  I haven’t heard the results yet, but pretty sure I’m clear as I didn’t see my neck glowing this time.   With Thyroid Cancer they give you radioactive iodine to treat the cancer and also for your body scans.  Thyroid tissue is the only tissue in your body that absorbs iodine which makes this treatment very successful.   Going through all this made me think of sharing with you the top 10 Anti-Cancer Superfoods.  I had a pretty clean diet before cancer, but now have incorporated these superfoods more often into my diet.

Do Anti-Cancer foods really work? Absolutely!  While studies are ongoing, and in many cases experts still don’t know exactly how these superfoods work, there’s strong evidence that certain fruits and vegetables rich in plant-based nutrients can both prevent tumors from starting and halt their growth.  Here are the top 10!

Tumeric

The orange-yellow spice turmeric, best known for its role in Indian curries and other Asian dishes, fights cancer because of an active ingredient, curcumin, that’s a powerful antioxidant.  Research has demonstrated anti-cancer effects at virtually all stages of tumor development.

Blueberries, Acai Berries, Raspberries, and Cranberries

The rich, dark colours of blueberries, Brazilian acai berries, raspberries and cranberries come from phytochemicals that protect against numerous types of cancer.

Green Tea

One of the first plant-based chemicals to be studied for its anti-cancer properties, catechins — the chemicals in green tea — have been known for some time to prevent and reduce recurrence of breast and other cancers.   Just two cups a day is enough to do the trick.

Garlic

Numerous studies over the years  have documented the anti-cancer properties of garlic. The strongest evidence so far has focused on digestive cancers, but garlic appears to protect against all types of cancer, including breast and prostate.  Add crushed, fresh garlic to your meals whenever possible; some experts also recommend waiting 15 minutes between peeling and chopping the garlic to get the full effects of the active compounds.

Broccoli and Cabbage

Not a shocker!  Studies have shown anti-cancer benefits from eating broccoli, cabbage, brussels sprouts, and other cruciferous vegetables.

Onions and Leeks

According to the National Institutes of Health, studies of people from Southern Europe who eat a diet high in garlic and onions show a direct relationship between high consumption of “allium” vegetables (all types of garlic, onions, and leeks) and reduced risk of many common cancers.

Tomatoes

Studies have shown that lycopene, the active chemical in tomatoes, lowered the risk of many different cancers, particularly prostate, breast, lung and colon cancer.

Soy

The active ingredient in soy is genistein, which is a phytoestrogen that protects against hormone-dependent cancers. It’s also a powerful inhibitor of several proteins that are implicated in the uncontrolled growth of cancer cells.  It is better consumed raw then in a supplement form.

Resveratrol

The hype about red wine centers on an antioxidant called resveratrol that’s present in grapes and grape juice, but is most concentrated in red wine. Numerous studies show that resveratrol possesses powerful anti-cancer activity.

Spinach

Spinach protects against bladder cancer. The chemical that gives spinach its dark green color, chlorophyllin, proved to reduce the risk of liver cancer.  Who cares about muscles? Here’s a much more important reason to eat your greens.

I’m not saying that you should consume these in place of doctor-recommended treatments.  I think you should boost your treatments with these anti-cancer superfoods.  If you haven’t been diagnosed with cancer, then you should implement these into your everyday diet.

Please comment and share your anti-cancer nutrition and diet ideas.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, October 20th, 2009 at 10:56 am and is filed under blog. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.