Question: Can diet help fight cancer?
Answer: Most cancer "strikes out of the blue," says Dr. Walter Bortz, ThirdAge Health expert. But cancer doesn't just happen by chance. Diet is one of the environmental hazards that lead to cancer--and there's overwhelming evidence that some factors in diet seem to cause cancer, while others seem to protect against it.
Eat wisely as one prevention against cancer, Dr. Bortz says, with special attention toward the following:
Watch the Fat--Fat in the diet has been repeatedly linked with breast cancer and prostate cancer. There's also a correlation between colon cancer and dietary fat consumption.
Curb the Alcohol--High alcohol consumption appears to encourage cancers of the esophagus and stomach.
Eat Well--A wide variety of foodstuffs appears to act as a protector against cancer. This range includes fiber, vitamins, and some sulfides contained in garlic and onions, which have either direct cancer-fighting effects or stimulate cancer-fighting enzymes. Vegetables, greens, and fruits appear to supply substances that act as cancer shields.
Despite the studies, however, all the research indicates diet's effect on the rate of cancer is indirect. It is based on experiments in test tubes and in animals, and on epidemiological associations. No one has proposed that a certain foodstuff is a direct cure for or protection against malignancy. Dr. Bortz's bottom line? Eat a well balanced diet with major emphasis on plant foods.
