THE MOSS REPORTS Newsletter (04/17/05)

[Guest guest]

17 Apr 2005 20:50:08 -0000

" Cancer Decisions " <

 

 

 

 

THE MOSS REPORTS Newsletter (04/17/05)

 

 

----------------------

Ralph W. Moss, Ph.D. Weekly CancerDecisions.com

Newsletter #180 04/17/05

----------------------

 

 

 

THE MOSS REPORTS

 

 

This week I begin a two-part discussion of the role of dietary

carotenoids in the prevention of prostate cancer.

 

For thirty years I have been studying the world of cancer and writing

about both the conventional and the alternative approach to cancer

treatment. The fruit of my long involvement in this field is The Moss

Reports, a comprehensive library of more than two hundred individual

reports

on specific cancer diagnoses. For a cancer patient, a Moss Report

represents an invaluable guide and handbook for the journey ahead.

 

If you would like to order a Moss Report for yourself or someone you

love, you can do so from our website, www.cancerdecisions.com, or by

calling Diane at 1-800-980-1234 (814-238-3367 from outside the US).

 

We look forward to helping you.

 

 

CAROTENOIDS MAY PROTECT AGAINST PROSTATE CANCER, PART I

 

 

Asians are well known to have a low incidence of prostate cancer.

Australian and Chinese researchers conducted what is called a

" case-control

study " in southeast China, the first of its kind in an Asian

population. They discovered that dietary lycopene and other

carotenoids may

protect against prostate cancer.

 

The researchers compared 130 patients with adenocarcinoma of the

prostate to 274 controls - men who were in the hospital for conditions

other

than prostate cancer. They found that the more carotenoid-rich foods

the men ate, the less their risk of developing prostate cancer.

 

Carotenoids are a class of compounds that are found abundantly in many

fruits and vegetables. The main dietary carotenoids are lycopene,

alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, beta-cryptoxanthin, lutein and zeaxanthin.

The researchers found that certain foods, including tomatoes, pumpkins,

spinach and citrus fruits, were particularly strongly associated with a

protective effect against prostate cancer.

 

Compared to those patients who had the lowest intake of lycopene, those

with the highest had an odds ratio for prostate cancer of 0.18. This

means that they had an 82 percent reduction in risk.

 

- With alpha-carotene the odds ratio was 0.43, i.e., a 57 percent risk

reduction.

- With beta-carotene, the odds ratio was 0.34, i.e., a 66 percent

reduction.

- With beta-cryptoxanthin the odds ratio was 0.15, i.e., an 85 percent

odds reduction.

- The odds ratios for lutein and zeaxanthin were even more impressive,

although in a personal communication the authors cautioned that the

study would have to be repeated with a larger number of patients in order

to yield a scientifically meaningful result.

 

There was a dose-response curve for each of these variables. In other

words, the more of these dietary carotenoids a man received, the lower

his risk of developing prostate cancer. Such dose-response curves are

very important to scientists, since they indicate that the agent in

question is having the suspected effect and that the effect is not due to

chance.

 

The authors, who included scientists at the School of Public Health,

Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Australia, and the School of

Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, People's Republic of China,

concluded that " [dietary intake of] carotenoids in vegetables and

fruits may

be inversely related to prostate carcinogenesis among Chinese men. "

 

 

Focus on Carotenoids

 

 

This study has focused increased attention on carotenoids, and lutein

and zeaxanthin in particular. These compounds belong to the vitamin A

family, also known as xanthophylls. The root `xanthos' in Greek means

reddish-yellow; `zeaxanthin' means corn yellow.

 

Not surprisingly, fruits and vegetables with a yellow or red-yellow hue

such as corn, peaches, mangoes and persimmons, are all high in

zeaxanthin. The closely-related carotenoid, lutein, can be found in

dark leafy

greens, such as spinach, kale, broccoli, and collard greens. Lutein and

zeaxanthin are also found in eggs, particularly from chickens that have

been fed marigold leaves to make their egg yolks more attractive.

 

 

UCLA Avocado Study

 

 

A 2005 study from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA),

showed that the most abundant source of lutein among 20 frequently

consumed fruits and vegetables was avocado. In this study, lutein

accounted

for 70 percent of the measured carotenoids in the avocado. Avocados also

contain significant quantities of vitamin E (Lu 2005).

 

The same group of researchers has also shown that lutein reduces

prostate cancer cell growth by 25 percent, while lycopene reduces such

cell

growth by 20 percent. But when lutein and lycopene are combined, the

prostate cancer cell growth rate can be reduced by 32 percent. This

indicates that both nutrients together help protect against prostate

cancer

better than either one alone (California 2005).

 

" Lutein and lycopene in combination appear to have additive or

synergistic effects against prostate cancer, " said Dr. David Heber,

director of

the UCLA Center for Human Nutrition. " Our results suggest that further

studies should be done to investigate the nutrient-nutrient

interactions of lutein and lycopene at a subcellular and molecular

level. "

 

Lutein can be converted to zeaxanthin in the body. But the macula of

the eye, which needs this vitamin, relies solely upon dietary sources for

50 percent of its zeaxanthin.

 

In addition to protecting against prostate cancer, lutein and

zeaxanthin have other potential health benefits. For instance, people

with high

levels of lutein and zeaxanthin in their blood are less likely to

develop age-associated eye problems such as cataracts and macular

degeneration.

 

Some commercial brands of vitamins state that they are " now with

lutein. " But the dose used in clinical studies varies between 5 to

11.7 mg of

lutein and 200 mcg of zeaxanthin. You would need to take 25 pills a day

of some of these " now with lutein " multivitamins to achieve the study

dose! You can, of course, get supplements with higher amounts. But in my

opinion, the most reliable way to get such desirable nutrients is

through foods, rather than relying on supplements. Supplements provide

nutrients in isolation, whereas foods supply complex mixtures of

nutrients

that often modulate each others' biological effects in a beneficial way.

A bountiful intake of corn, avocados, organic eggs, etc. is a reliable

source of these healthful nutrients.

 

 

TO BE CONCLUDED, WITH REFERENCES, NEXT WEEK.

 

 

--Ralph W. Moss, PhD

 

---------------

 

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS

 

The news and other items in this newsletter are intended for

informational purposes only. Nothing in this newsletter is intended to

be a

substitute for professional medical advice.

 

Copyright © The Internet Society (2004). This document is subject to

the rights, licenses and restrictions contained in BCP 78, and except

as set forth therein, the authors retain all their rights.

 

This document and the information contained herein are provided on an

" AS IS " basis and THE CONTRIBUTOR, THE ORGANIZATION HE/SHE REPRESENTS OR

IS SPONSORED BY (IF ANY), THE INTERNET SOCIETY AND THE INTERNET

ENGINEERING TASK FORCE DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED,

INCLUDING

BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTY THAT THE USE OF THE INFORMATION HEREIN

WILL NOT INFRINGE ANY RIGHTS OR ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF

MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

 

This document may not be modified, and derivative works of it may not

be created.

 

--------------

 

IMPORTANT NOTICE:

 

If you have questions or concerns, please use our form at

http://www.cancerdecisions.com/contact.html

Thank you.

 

 

To SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER: Please go to

http://cancerdecisions.com/list/optin.php?form_id=8

and follow the instructions to be automatically added to this list.

Thank you.

 

=====

 

CancerDecisions®

PO Box 1076

Lemont, PA 16851

Phone Toll Free: 800-980-1234

If calling from outside the USA: 814-238-3367

FAX: 814-238-3367

 

=====