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Alternative Cancer Treatment - Can Diet affect Cancer ?

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by Meng Y

No sector of oncology is more confusing and controversial than the relationship between cancer and an individual’s diet. Most people would like that think that there exists a diet which can make a significant impact on either the likelihood of cancer, or better yet aid in curing it once it is contracted.

Reputable sources all seem to agree that there is no diet that can cure cancer. There is also no evidence strong enough to support the belief that any diet can prevent an individual from contracting cancer. However, there are many studies that suggest that the occurrence, recurrence, and even survivability rates could potentially be affected by the foods an individual selects.

Though far from certain, many studies examined by researchers at Cornell University were able to correlate lower death rates - an increased five or ten year survivability, with certain dietary choices.

The Nurses Health Study which examined 1,982 women who had already developed breast cancer. These women were followed for an average of 13 years. Of those women 1200 had breast cancers that had not yet metastasized (spreading of a primary tumor to other areas of the body thus producing a secondary tumor of the same type). If an individual’s cancer has spread then typically their survival rates are known to be much lower.

Some individuals in the first group ate greater amounts of poultry and seafood, which contains protein and omega-3 fatty acids. These individuals had a much lower risk of death than the women in the second group who did not consume as much. In addition, it was discovered that women who ate a greater amount of hydrogenated oils had a much higher death rate.

Additionally, another study which was conducted by the National Cancer Institute observed 2,400 individuals. Of those individuals 975 women who had contracted breast cancer were asked to consume a low fat diet (33.3g per day) for a period of five years. Another 1,462 women consumed 51.3 g of fat per day. The group consuming less fat experienced a 42% reduction in the recurrence rate.

The difficulty with all these studies is they are looking only at associations, not causation. It’s unclear from the data what is relevant. Do these dietary choices reflect only the fact that women who focus on maintaining a healthy diet are making healthier lifestyle choices overall? Or, are the foods themselves actually helpful or harmful, and to what degree?

As with most studies that involve fruits and vegetables, the answer is uncertain. Aside from those which contain antioxidants any effect that is beneficial just isn’t known with complete confidence. In this instance, however, the evidence does support that foods which are high in antioxidants do aid in the reduction of the chance of contracting breast cancer.

Free radicals circulating throughout an individual’s blood stream are ionized atoms that are widely able to harm cells. Antioxidants act to reduce the amount of free radicals by combining with them, thus rendering them harmless.

The studies on fat, however, are less clear. The leading theory says that since high estrogen levels are widely known to correlate with a greater risk of breast cancer and fat acts as an efficient storage of estrogen, then lowering fat therefore lowers the risk.

Conclusions are drawn from time to time that are rather flawed. For example there is the belief that eating fat causes an individual to be fat. It is not necessarily the consumption of fat that causes higher body fat. Consuming more calories than the body uses causes one’s body to store the excess calories as fat, thus leading to a higher body fat percentage. In addition, fat contains more calories per unit weight than other foods. Therefore the route is indirect.

Despite difficult to interpret or incomplete evidence, there is one thing all experts can readily agree on: maintaining a healthy diet and lifestyle are wise choices. Whether they lower the risk of contracting breast cancer or not, for the 1 in 12 women who will get it sometime in their life, being in optimal health helps combat it before, during and after.

About the Author:
Can there really be a natural way to fight cancer cell ? Yes, fucoidan, was proven scientifically to do just that. The extract from brown seaweed. Click Alternative Cancer Treatment to learn more about how it has help me and the 600+ researches backing it.



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