Foods as Medicine: The Scientific Basis

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Foods as Medicine: The Scientific Basis

http://www.breastcancerchoices.org/food.html

 

 

Which better prevents breast tumors, red grapes or green tea?

 

A May 2006 study found that the polyphenol, resveratrol, found in red grapes,

is more effective than the polyphenol, epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), the

major catechin found in green tea in preventing breast tumors in rats.

Starting at birth, rats were given either dietary resveratrol, drank EGCG, or

had

regular food. At 50 days' old, the rats were given the carcinogen, DMBA. The

rats on resveratrol had fewer tumors, and there was a delay in time to the

developmentof the tumors.

 

Analysis of the mammary tissue revealed that resveratrol treatment resulted

in more differentiated lobular structures. Plus, there was a significant

reduction in proliferative cells in mammary ductal structures, making the

mammary

tissue less susceptible to damage from carcinogens. (See Whitsett TG et al.,

Resveratrol, but Not EGCG, in the Diet Suppresses DMBA- Induced Mammary Cancer

in Rats, J Carcinog 2006.)

 

 

Anti-Inflammatory Turmeric Fights Breast Cancer

 

Inflammation is associated with a wide variety of cancers, including breast

cancer.

 

Women with atypical hyperplasia in benign tumors in their breasts, who went

on to develop breast cancer, were found to have significantly high levels of

COX-2, which is produced in the body when there is inflammation.

(See Mechanisms' Section.) In a key 2005 study, curcumin, which is derived

from turmeric, was found to down-regulate COX-2. In India, where women consume

curcumin, 79 in a million women develop breast cancer, while in the US, where

women do not consume curcumin, 660 women per million develop breast cancer.

(See Turmeric in Supplements' Section.)

 

 

Anti-Inflammatory Fish Oil Fights Breast Cancer

 

Omega-3 fats, found in fish oil, inhibit the growth of breast cancer cells in

culture and in grafts in mice. Dietary fish oils lead to incorporation into

membrane lipids. Increased cell death is attributed to inhibition of the COX-

2, enzyme which promotes the cancer process. Plus, fish oil activates PPAR, a

regulator of lipid metabolism capable of modulating proliferative activity in

breast cells. (See Stoll BA, n-3 Fatty Acids and Lipid Peroxidation in Breast

Cancer Inhibition, Br J Nutr 2002.) Women in Japan who consume iodine-rich

seafood have a lower incidence of breast cancer (See Iodine and Breast

Disease.)

 

 

Cabbage Family's I3C's Anti- Breast Cancer Mechanisms

 

The cabbage family, including cabbage, cauliflower, and broccoli, contain

phytochemicals that act against cancer in many different ways. Cabbage, alone,

has 200+ chemicals. There has been important new research on the phytochemical,

indole-3-carbinol (I3C), which is derived from the cabbage family, finding

that I3C influences cancer genes and a receptor site. Plus, phytochemicals in

the

cabbage family are able to induce phase 2 enzyme activity to protect against

chemical carcinogens.

 

Hot News: In a 2006 Georgetown University study, indole-3-carbinol (I3C)

phytochemicals in broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage, were found to boost the

production of DNA proteins BRCA 1 and BRCA 2 - that repair damaged DNA that are

decreased in cancer cells. (See Rosen E et al., Veggies May Protect Against

Cancer, British Journal of Cancer 2006.)

 

Dr. Eliot Rosen, the lead researcher in the Georgetown study, commented, " It

is now clear that the function of crucial cancer genes can be influenced by

compounds in the things we eat. Our findings suggest a clear molecular process

that will explain the connection between diet and cancer prevention. "

 

Another I3C study, a November 2005 study, exploring the anti-tumorigenic

properties of the indole-3-carbinol food component in cruciferous vegetables,

found that the anti-tumor effects of I3C in human cancer cells may be I3C's

ability to reduce estrogen receptor-alpha expression.(See Wang TT et al.,

Estrogen

Receptor Alpha As a Target for Indole -3- Carbinol, J Nutr Biochem 2005.)

 

In a broccoli sprouts' study in rats, broccoli sprouts were found to be an

exceptionally rich source of inducers of enzymes that protect against chemical

carcinogens. Extracts of three day old broccoli sprouts were highly effective

in reducing the incidence, multiplicity, and rate of development of mammary

tumors in rats. (See Fahey JW., Broccoli Sprouts: An Exceptionally Rich Source

of Inducers of Enzymes that Protect Against Chemical Carcinogens, Proc Natl

Acad Sci USA 1997.)

 

 

Berries Help Fight Breast Cancer

 

A Harvard study tracking the diet and health of 1,271 people wholove

strawberries found an overall 70% decrease in all cancers. A 2004 cell study

investigated the specific effects of ten different extracts of fruits and

berries,

including rosehips, blueberries, black currant, black chokeberries, apple, sea

buckthorn, ligonberries, cherries, and raspberries, on breast cancer cells and

colon cancer cells. The extracts decreased the proliferation of both the

breast cancer cells and the colon cancer cells. The inhibition effect for the

highest concentration of the fruits and berries varied - an average of 52% for

the

breast bancer cells. Since this rate of anti- proliferation could not be

found by ascorbate standard alone, there was a suggestion of a synergy between

vitamin C and other substances. For breast cancer cells, the anthocyanins ,

which are the red to blue pigments founds in the fruits and belong to the class

of compounds known as flavonoids, may contribute their powerful antioxidant

power to the inhibition of the cancer cells. (See Olsson M. et al., Inhibition

of

Cancer Cell Proliferation in Vitro by Fruit and Berry Extracts and

Correlations with Antioxidant Levels, J Agric Food Chem 2004.)

 

 

Tomatoes' Anti-Breast Cancer Mechanisms

 

Hot News: While carotenoids have been well known as being free-radical

scavengers, a 2006 study sought to determine the mechanism of action of tomato

carotenoid lycopene and retinoic acid on inhibiting IGFs - insulin-like growth

factors - in the proliferation of cancer cells, including breast cancer cells.

In the cell study, the cyclin D1 levels, that act as a growth factor sensor,

appeared to be the target of lycopene's action. The weakening of the cyclin D

levels by the lycopene and the retinoic acid is an important mechanism for

reducing the IGFs' role in malignant cell proliferation. (See Nahum A et al.,

Lycopene Inhibition of IGF-Induced Cancer Cell Growth Depends on the Level of

Cyclin D1, Eur J Nutr 2006.)

 

Organic Strawberries Better Inhibited Breast Cancer Cell Proliferation

 

Hot News: Organically grown strawberries provided higher antioxidant levels

and better inhibited cell proliferation than conventionally grown strawberries

in breast cancer cells. In a 2006 study, the higher level of ascorbate

(vitamin C) antioxidants found in organic strawberries correlated with a higher

inhibition of breast cancer cell proliferation. The significance of the effect

of

ascorbate on cancer cell proliferation might be in a synergistic action with

other compounds. (See Olsson ME et al.,Antioxidant Levels and Inhibition of

cancer Cell Proliferation In Vitro By Extracts From Organically and

Conventionally

Cultivated Strawberries, J Agric Food Chem 2006.)