Soy peptide aids in blocking metastasis

An article published online on September 10, 2011 in the journal Cancer Letters describes the discovery ofElvira Gonzalez de Mejia and Vermont P. Dia of the University of Illinois in Urbana of a benefit for lunasin, a peptide that occurs in soy, in preventing the spread of colon cancer to the liver, the predominant site of metastasis for this type of cancer.  “When lunasin was used in combination with the chemotherapy drug oxaliplatin, we saw a sixfold reduction in the number of new tumor sites,” revealed Dr de Mejia, who is an associate professor of food chemistry and food toxicology at UI.

The current study utilized mice bred to develop colon cancer that metastasizes to the liver.  The researchers divided the animals to receive daily injections of lunasin, lunasin plus the chemotherapy drug oxaliplatin, oxaliplatin alone or neither compound.  “The group that received lunasin alone had 50 percent fewer metastatic sites,” reported Dr de Mejia.  “But an even more exciting result was seen in the group that received both lunasin and the chemotherapy drug—only 5 new cancer sites when compared with 28 in the control group.”

“This huge reduction in metastasis was achieved with the amount of lunasin in only 25 daily grams of soy protein, the amount recommended in the FDA health claim,” noted Dr Dia, who is a University of Illinois postdoctoral fellow.  “In this study, we have learned that lunasin can penetrate the cancer cell, cause cell death, and interact with at least one type of receptor in a cell that is ready to metastasize.”

“Two glasses of soy milk a day generally provide half the amount of lunasin used in our study,” Dr de Mejia remarked. “It certainly seems feasible to create a lunasin-enriched product that people could consume in a preventive way.”

Grape Seed Extract Kills Cancer, Leaves Healthy Cells Unharmed

dd grape seed extract to the list of nutrients that can tell friend from foe, offering safe and helpful non-toxic remedies for those dealing with cancer or wishing to prevent it.  The latest study published last week in the journal Carcinogenesis is a mouse study involving head and neck squamous cell carcinoma cells.  It showed that grape seed extract damaged the DNA of cancer while blocking the ability of cancer cells to repair such damage.  In contrast, grape seed extract is one of the friendliest and most helpful nutrients known to healthy cells. 

“It’s a rather dramatic effect,” says Rajesh Agarwal, PhD, investigator at the University of Colorado Cancer Center. “Cancer cells are fast-growing cells. Not only that, but they are necessarily fast growing. When conditions exist in which they can’t grow, they die.  Yet we saw absolutely no toxicity to the mice, themselves.  I think the whole point is that cancer cells have a lot of defective pathways and they are very vulnerable if you target those pathways. The same is not true of healthy cells.”

I have previously reported that grape seed extract reduces prostate cancer risk, helps prevent skin cancer, and is effective against leukemia cells.  One study shows that grape seed extract and resveratrol work synergistically to knock out colon cancer cells.

It is becoming clear that nutrition offers great hope for prevention of cancer as well as treatment, actually helping chemo drugs work better at lower doses.  Nutrition actually has intelligent gene-management function, demonstrating the ability to kill cancer cells while helping to assist healthy cells.  Other nutrients in this category include tocotrienols, curcumin, green tea catechins, quercetin, DHA fish oil, and many others.

Individuals should not consider any one nutrient or combination of nutrients as a sole treatment for cancer.  However, the ridiculous recommendation by many oncologists to discontinue all antioxidants during cancer treatment should be thrown into the trash bin of ignorance and incompetence.  It is high time the FDA and other public health institutions embraced the stunning ability of nutrition to prevent and help combat disease.

Vitamin D: powerful cancer protection

Vitamin D insufficiency is common among Americans overall but more prevalent among African Americans. A recent review of the literature suggests that vitamin D insufficiency is a key contributor to cancer survival disparities that exist between African Americans and white Americans (darker skin is less efficient at producing vitamin D in response to UV rays).1 A striking part of this literature review is the comprehensive summary of the existing data on vitamin D status and cancer survival: the authors present a long list of studies reporting that vitamin D adequacy is associated wit h reduced risk of death in all cancers combined, breast, colorectal, lung, and prostate cancer, leukemia and lymphomas.1

A protective effect of vitamin D against cancers was first proposed in 1980, based on an earlier observation that colon cancer mortality was the highest in geographical areas exposed to the least amounts of sunlight.2,3 Several more studies of geographical variations in cancers have found the same result: inverse relationships exist between sun exposure and 24 types of cancer, including the most common cancers – those of the breast, colon, rectum, and prostate.4,5

Since 1980, evidence for the involvement of vitamin D in the relationship between sun exposure and decreased cancer risk has progressively accumulated, as associations were found between blood vitamin D levels and reduced risk of cancers.6,7 Further support for the importance of vitamin D in cancer prevention was provided by randomized controlled trials of vitamin D supplementation that showed reduced cancer risk compared to placebo. There have also been many reports that vitamin D receptor gene mutations, which interfere with the normal biological actions of vitamin D, were associated with increased cancer risk.8-10

Additional studies confirmed that vitamin D has growth-inhibitory effects on cells derived from breast, colon, prostate, and skin cancers.11 Vitamin D can block cancer cell growth in a number of ways: Vitamin D alters the expression of genes that regulate inflammation, cell death and cell proliferation, and also interferes with the growth-promoting actions of IGF-1 and other growth factors. Additional anti-cancer effects of vitamin D include enhanced DNA repair and immune defenses, and angiogenesis inhibition.12

Today, over 800 scientific papers have been published on the relationship between vitamin D and cancers. We now have ample evidence that maintaining adequate vitamin D levels is an effective strategy for protection against cancer.

Considering all of this evidence, achieving vitamin D sufficiency is so very important. Unfortunately, the Institute of Medicine is hesitant to significantly raise its vitamin D recommendations, so most multivitamins still do not contain nearly enough vitamin D (only 400 IU) to offer the security that a normal Vitamin D level will be achieved. This is an important reason why I designed my new Men’s and Women’s Daily Formula + D multivitamins to include 2000 IU of vitamin D3. In my experience, 2000 IU has been an appropriate dose to bring most people into the favorable blood 25(OH)D range of 30-50 ng/ml (I also recommend getting a blood test to confirm adequate levels). These are the only mult ivitamin supplements with a 2000 IU dose of D3 plus no folic acid, beta-carotene, copper, and vitamin A. This enables most people to get everything they need without needing to take multiple different products. For extra assurance, I’ve also utilized Vitamin D3 because of its highest biological value thus offering the most protection, which also is most effective for raising 25(OH)D levels.13 My goal is to make it as easy as possible to maintain healthy vitamin D levels, with plenty of D3 in a multivitamin which also gives you everything else that is worthy of supplementing, and carefully avoiding those supplemental ingredients that are potentially harmful; so additional supplements aren’t necessary to obtain the anti-cancer and bone-protective benefits of vitamin D and the other recommended nutrients.

Click here to comment on this article at DiseaseProof.com

References:

1. Grant WB, Peris AN. Differences in vitamin D status may account for unexplained disparities in cancer survival rates between African and White Americans. DermatoEndocrinology 2012;4.
2. Garland CF, Garland FC. Do sunlight and vitamin D reduce the likelihood of colon cancer? Int J Epidemiol 1980;9:227-231.
3. Apperly FL. The Relation of Solar Radiation to Cancer Mortality in North America. Cancer Res 1941;1:191-195.
4. Grant WB, Garland CF. The association of solar ultraviolet B (UVB) with reducing risk of cancer: multifactorial ecologic analysis of geographic variation in age-adjusted cancer mortality rates. Anticancer Res 2006;26:2687-2699.
5. Grant WB. Ecological studies of the UVB-vitamin D-cancer hypothesis. Anticancer Res 2012;32:223-236.
6. Gandini S, Boniol M, Haukka J, et al. Meta-analysis of observational studies of serum 25-hyd roxyvitamin D levels and colorectal, breast and prostate cancer and colorectal adenoma. Int J Cancer 2011;128:1414-1424.
7. Grant WB. Relation between prediagnostic serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D level and incidence of breast, colorectal, and other cancers. J Photochem Photobiol B 2010;101:130-136.
8. Kostner K, Denzer N, Muller CS, et al. The relevance of vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene polymorphisms for cancer: a review of the literature. Anticancer Res 2009;29:3511-3536.
9. Lappe JM, Travers-Gustafson D, Davies KM, et al. Vitamin D and calcium supplementation reduces cancer risk: results of a randomized trial. Am J Clin Nutr 2007;85:1586-1591.
10. Bolland MJ, Grey A, Gamble GD, et al. Calcium and vitamin D supplements and health outcomes: a reanalysis of the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) limited-access data set. Am J Clin Nutr 2011;94:1144-1149.
11. Fleet JC. Molecular actions of vitamin D contributing to cancer prevention. Mol Aspects Med 2008;29 :388-396.
12. Fleet JC, DeSmet M, Johnson R, et al. Vitamin D and cancer: a review of molecular mechanisms. Biochem J 2012;441:61-76.
13. Tripkovic L, Lambert H, Hart K, et al. Comparison of vitamin D2 and vitamin D3 supplementation in raising serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D status: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Am J Clin Nutr 2012.

Vitamin D revealed to be miracle anti-cancer ‘drug’ with astonishing chemical properties

A new study published this month finds that the hormonally active form of vitamin D, Calcitriol 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D(3), inhibits the growth of many kinds of cancerous cells, including breast cancer, indicating that vitamin D3 can be useful in treating and even preventing a variety of cancers. Authors of the study said that caner cell growth is inhibited by “anticancer actions including cell cycle arrest, promotion of apoptosis and inhibition of invasion, metastasis, and angiogenesis.” Vitamin D’s anti-inflammatory properties and interference with estrogen synthesis further explains its anti-tumor properties.

Two studies from 2007 used meta-analysis, which combines data from multiple reports, to find that therapeutic doses of vitamin D could prevent up to half of all cases of breast cancer, and two-thirds of all cases of colorectal cancer in the United States. The studies showed a direct correlation between blood levels of vitamin D and cancer. Those with the highest blood levels were found to be at the lowest risk, and the lowest blood levels at the highest risk.

Many sources still try to cast a shadow on the effectiveness of vitamin D, citing that a specific dose strength has not yet been established, and needs more research. It likely won’t be narrowed down to a one-size-fits-all dose, because every body is different, and if it were, it wouldn’t be as effective. One other thing that may be giving varied results regarding dosing is the source of vitamin D used – it varies from study to study. Typically, higher doses are required of synthetic sources to increase blood levels, and they don’t generally have the same effect as natural sources.

Vitamin D facts

The “sunshine” vitamin, vitamin D is fat-soluble vitamin required for the absorption and utilization of calcium and phosphorous. It protects against muscle weakness, regulates heartbeat, is necessary for normal blood clotting and thyroid function, and regulates more than 2,000 genes, affecting the proliferation and death of cells.

Vitamin D comes in several forms. The kind that comes from food is D2. There is a synthetic form, D5. The most active is the most natural kind, D3. It is synthesized in the skin in response to the sun’s ultraviolet rays. There is a cholesterol compound in the skin that is a precursor of vitamin D. The D we get from food and supplements is not fully active until it goes through the liver and kidneys, where it is converted, then it circulates through the blood like a hormone.

According to Bach, problems from deficiency may include: heart disease, birth defects, depression, hypertension, stroke, dementia, fibromyalgia, impaired bone mineralization, skin, breast, prostate and other cancers, multiple sclerosis, insomnia, eye problems, problems with pregnancy, and other chronic diseases. It is estimated that more than one billion people worldwide, and 77 percent of Americans, are deficient in vitamin D.

It is not possible for most people to consume enough vitamin D thorough diet alone. It is found in fatty saltwater fish and fish liver oils, such as halibut, salmon, sardines, and cod liver oil. It is also added (fortified) to diary and eggs, so you’ll find it in things like milk, yogurt, and butter. Other foods that have vitamin D include dandelion greens, oatmeal, cereals, and sweet potatoes.

Having a healthy and balanced diet can prevent cancer, and the need for prescriptions that contribute to cancer, such as cholesterol reducing drugs that inhibit vitamin D absorption from the sun. Even the National Cancer Institute estimates that 80 percent of cancer cases could be prevented. Most people supplement to get enough vitamin D. The recommended doses are generally not enough to address health problems. Be sure your supplements come from whole food vitamins so that higher doses won’t be detrimental to your health, as they might from synthetic vitamin sources.

Eating good food, limiting unhealthy food and substances, getting exercise, and soaking up a bit of sun are critical to happiness and lasting health. So get out there and have fun – and help prevent cancer while you’re at it!

Sources for this article include:

http://www.foodconsumer.org

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/02/070206100608.htm

Balch, Phyllis, CNC. Prescription for Nutritional Healing. p. 21.

http://www.naturalnews.com/035063_vitamin_D_cancer_facts.html

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/036597_vitamin_D_anti-cancer_drug.html#ixzz228OiBbUb

Eating Purple Cabbage Is Great For Your Skin And Prevents Cancer

Along with other cole crops, cabbage is a source of indole-3-carbinol, a chemical that boosts DNA repair in cells and appears to block the growth of cancer cells. A team of researchers at Ohio State University announced that anthocyanins, the compounds that give cabbage its purple color are capable of cutting the growth of colon cancer cells both in vitro and in rats by 50%-100%, with certain extracts even destroying up to 20% of the cancer cells while leaving healthy surrounding cells intact.

Given the roles of oxidative stress and chronic inflammation as risk factors for cancer, the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory richness of cabbage would provide anti-cancer health benefits without the addition of cabbage’s glucosinolates. But glucosinolates are cabbage’s trump card with regard to “anti-cancer” benefits. The glucosinolates found in cabbage can be converted into isothiocyanate compounds that are cancer preventive for a variety of different cancers, including bladder cancer, breast cancer, colon cancer, and prostate cancer.

Cabbage is a great store of vitamin C and vitamin K. The rich deep colour of this vegetable is due to a high concentration of polyphenols (strong dietary antioxidants, possessing anti-inflammatory properties), making it have even more phytonutrients than a green cabbage.

A recent study showed that a 100 gram (about 3 ounces) serving of raw purple cabbage delivers 196.5 milligrams of polyphenols, of which 28.3 milligrams are anthocyanins. Green cabbages yielded much less per 100 grams: 45 milligrams of polyphenols including 0.01 milligram of anthocyanins. The vitamin C equivalent, a measure of antioxidant capacity, of purple cabbage is also six to eight times higher than that of green cabbage.

Men and women who regularly consume foods that are rich in anthocyanins — like purple cabbage and berries — have alower risk of developing Parkinson’s disease.

The antioxidant pigment may also reduce blood vessel hardening and improve overall heart health.

Other studies have shown that anthocyanins may help reduce the risk of heart disease and diabetes.

Purple cabbage is rich in these antioxidants which has also been found to make skin supple and clear.

Fiber
A 1-cup serving of chopped purple cabbage provides 2 g of fiber, or 8 percent of the 25-g daily value as recommended by the Food and Drug Administration. Dietary fiber prevents excess cholesterol from entering your bloodstream through the wall of your small intestine; the fiber absorbs the cholesterol and excretes it through the waste elimination process.

Potassium
The potassium content in 1 cup of chopped purple cabbage is 216 mg, or 6 percent of the 3500-mg daily value. Potassium keeps your body’s fluid level from fluctuating to unhealthy volumes, preventing potassium-related blood pressure disorders. It also prevents heart muscle stress by supporting the contraction that fuels your heartbeat.

Vitamin C 
The vitamin C content in purple cabbage is nutritionally significant. A 1-cup serving provides 51 mg, or 85 percent, of the 60-mg daily requirement. Cooking decomposes some of the nutrient. Raw purple cabbage contains a higher level of vitamin C than it does when cooked. Vitamin C is an effective antioxidant. It protects cells from the DNA and compositional destruction that metabolic toxins often cause.

Vitamin A
The vitamin A content in purple cabbage is 20 percent of the 5000 IU required each day, or 993 IU per 1-cup serving. Vitamin A is a nutrient that provides a variety of functions in your body. It produces retina pigments for your eyes, maintains vision health and improves vision at night. It also supports your body’s immune response, reducing your risk of microbial infection.
Research suggests that boiling or cooking purple cabbage reduces its anti-carcinogenic properties. The best way to eat it is raw in salads and quickly after it is prepared since the oxidation process evolves quickly in this leafy vegetable. I personally enjoy it with a little balsamic vinegar and olive oil. It makes the perfect appetizer or side-dish to any meal.

Natasha Longo has a master’s degree in nutrition and is a certified fitness and nutritional counselor. She has consulted on public health policy and procurement in Canada, Australia, Spain, Ireland, England and Germany.

http://preventdisease.com/news/12/111512_Eating-Purple-Cabbage-Is-Great-For-Your-Skin-And-Prevents-Cancer.shtml

Higher Anthocyanin Intake Found in Fruits and Veggies Improves Cardiovascular Health

Cancer breakthrough: Grape seed extract kills colorectal cancer cells

Cancer researchers are working to find chemotherapies that destroy cancer cells but are harmless to normal cells. It turns out, a natural substance already exists that does just that. University of Colorado Cancer Center scientists have just published a study in the journal Cancer Letters that shows grape seed extract (GSE) is a powerful weapon against colorectal cancer. It halts the growth and survival of colorectal cancer cells and kills them in large numbers, too, while leaving healthy cells completely alone.

And the news about GSE gets better: the more advanced the colorectal cancer cells, the more GSE shuts down the malignant cells’ growth and survival. The scientists think that GSE targets colorectal cancer by causing oxidative stress that leads to the programmed cell death known as apoptosis.

“We’ve known for quite a while that the bioactive compounds in grape seed extract selectively target many types of cancer cells. This study shows that many of the same mutations that allow colorectal cancer cells to metastasize and survive traditional therapies make them especially sensitive to treatment with GSE,” Molly Derry, doctoral candidate in the lab of Rajesh Agarwal, PhD, investigator at the CU Cancer Center and professor at the Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, said in a press statement.

Derry pointed out that the GSE findings are especially important due to the increasing rates of colorectal cancer. Unfortunately, 60 percent of patients diagnosed with this form of cancer have already reached the advanced stage of the disease.

As the research team performed their experiments on colorectal cancer cell lines representing all stages of the disease, they came up with another startling finding. Although it usually takes much more chemotherapy to kill a stage IV cancer cell than a stage II cancer cell, the exact opposite was true when it came to grape seed extract.

“It required less than half the concentration of GSE to suppress cell growth and kill 50 percent of stage IV cells than it did to achieve similar results in the stage II cells,” Derry revealed in a media statement.

“A colorectal cancer cell can have upwards of 11,000 genetic mutations — differences from the DNA in healthy cells. Traditional chemotherapies may only target a specific mutation and as cancer progresses more mutations occur. These changes can result in cancer that is resistance to chemotherapy. In contrast, the many bioactive compounds of GSE are able to target multiple mutations. The more mutations a cancer presents, the more effective GSE is in targeting them,” Derry added.

The Agarwal Lab studies the effectiveness and action of dietary compounds against cancer and is encouraging further exploration of their findings in clinical settings with patients. “Finding a way to selectively target advanced colorectal cancer cells could have major clinical importance,” Derry stated.

As NaturalNews previously reported, researchers from the University of Kentucky have also conducted groundbreaking research into the anti-cancer properties of grape seed extract. They found the natural substance triggered the death of 76 percent of leukemia cells exposed to the extract in a laboratory experiment. Their study, published Clinical Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, showed that grape seed extract triggered the destruction of leukemia cells by apparently “turning on” a protein known as JNK that regulates the cancer cell killing pathway.

Sources:

http://www.cancerletters.info/article/S0304-3835(12)00732-X/abstract
http://www.coloradocancerblogs.org
http://www.naturalnews.com
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S030438351200732X

About the author:
Sherry Baker is a widely published writer whose work has appeared in Newsweek, Health, the Atlanta Journal and Constitution, Yoga Journal, Optometry, Atlanta, Arthritis Today, Natural Healing Newsletter, OMNI, UCLA’s “Healthy Years” newsletter, Mount Sinai School of Medicine’s “Focus on Health Aging” newsletter, the Cleveland Clinic’s “Men’s Health Advisor” newsletter and many others.

Learn more:http://www.naturalnews.com/038964_grape_seed_extract_colorectal_cancer_breakthrough.html#ixzz2KAD27kgr

Reduce your cancer risk – especially colorectal – by eating more ginger

Ginger is one of Ayurveda’s favorite medicinal and tonic herbs, and it has emerged also as a culinary favorite lately. There has been considerable clinical testing by modern Western medicine that shows ginger’s anti-inflammatory effects.

Now, there’s been a small trial that points to ginger’s capacity for inhibiting and preventing cancer. The trial was performed on 20 subjects who were considered high risk for colorectal cancer.

Colorectal cancer is cancer of the colon or rectum. It is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer, and it is the second most lethal. The cancer industry asserts that early detection leads to possibly thwarting the death sentence.

They insist on screening often from age 50. Screening may include removed polyp biopsies or colonoscopies and CT Scans. Then comes the cut (surgery) and poison (chemotherapy). Chris Wark of Memphis, Tennessee was diagnosed with stage three colon cancer at the young age of 26.

He underwent surgery, but refused chemotherapy. A book literally laid on his doorstep led him into a strict raw vegan and juicing diet with supplements and herbs, which was modified a few months later by a local naturopath.

He’s in his mid-30s now, married with two kids, and still cancer free. He loves to post alternative cancer cure stories on his website – Chris beat cancer. (http://www.chrisbeatcancer.com/)

That ginger cancer prevention trial

The pilot trial was conducted at Atlanta, Georgia’s Emory University. It was published in the National Institute of Health’s(NIH)PubMed as “Effects of Ginger Supplementation on Cell Cycle Biomarkers in the Normal-Appearing Colonic Mucosa: Results from a Pilot, Randomized, Controlled Trial.”

The usual division of placebo and test subjects divided the group of 20 individuals considered high risk for colorectal cancerinto two groups of 10 each. This double blind study approach is a rather cruel hoax for the placebo subjects while using non-toxic medicines.

But they insist on this protocol and others that torture animals so they can accept it as evidence based research.

The 10 lucky subjects were given two grams of ginger a day for 28 days. State of the art diagnostic testing was utilized to observe various markers on all 20 subjects detrimental to cancer forming. They examined biopsies of rectal mucosa and epithelium (thin tissue layer) crypts (tiny pockets) from both groups.

After the 28 days, biopsy markers for those who were taking two grams of ginger daily were markedly better than the placebo group.

The researchers concluded: “… ginger may reduce proliferation in the normal-appearing colorectal epithelium and increase apoptosis [cancer cell death] and differentiation relative to proliferation … [to] support a larger study to further investigate these results.”

In other words, you can use ginger to help keep cancer away, especially colorectal cancer.

Suggestions for consuming ginger

You can purchase ginger capsules, or use ginger powder to make your own and/or sprinkle onto foods. Two grams doesn’t amount to much, especially if you use it for teas, beverages, or with food.

You can purchase ginger root from most health food stores. Ginger root is not among the top “dirty dozen” of most pesticide sprayed foods. So don’t worry if organic ginger root is not within your budget.

Peel the skin off ginger roots just before using them. If you juice with a masticating juicer, you can drop a couple inches of the root into your juicer along with other veggies and apples. It spices things up and supplies a large dose of cancer preventing ginger.

For ginger tea, it’s best to use the traditional method of covering the bottom of a pan with thin slices of peeled ginger root, bringing it to a boil then letting it simmer for a half-hour. Whatever you don’t drink can be stored in the fridge for a few days.

Here are some ginger food recipe suggestions: (http://www.vegangela.com/tag/ginger/), (http://allrecipes.com/recipe/ginger-veggie-stir-fry/)

Sources for this article include:

http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/colorectal/basic_info/facts.htm

http://www.vitasearch.com/get-clp-summary/40534

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23303903

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/039058_colorectal_cancer_prevention_ginger.html#ixzz2LGszwMF9

AVOCADO CURES PROSTATE CANCER, ORAL CANCER 

God had prepared fruits of the tree as food for sustenance. He made everything ready for man to survive on this earth. There is nothing missing in the beautiful world that He created for man to live in. Every thing is complete for man's survival.

God declared in Genesis 1:29, "And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; for you it shall be for meat." (vs. 31) And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold it was very good."

The perfect world that God made for man was sullied because Man sinned and disobeyed against God. Everything changed when man sinned against the commandment of God. In the beginning, man survived on herbs and fruits. After the flood of Noah's days, he was allowed to consume meat. The Edenic days had disappeared when man sinned and rebelled against God, the creator of his world. It took a long time before man would redeem himself and return to the fold of God.

In the 21st century, diseases abound and man is trying to find remedies to combat this and turning to alternative means to fight diseases. A number of herbs, fruits and vegetables have been found to be beneficial in combating diseases like cancer, heart diseases, and other diseases.

Male Reproductive Organs

Male Reproductive Organs

PROSTATE CANCER

Treatment of Prostate Cancer varies depending on the stage of the cancer (i.e., spread) and may include surgical removal, radiation, chemotherapy, hormonal manipulation or a combination of these treatments.

AVOCADO and PROSTATE CANCER

Interesting recent research shows that avocado seems to be a potent warrior in the fight against prostate cancer. Avocados contain the highest amount of the carotenoid lutein of all commonly eaten fruits. In addition, they contain related carotenoids, including zeaxanthin, alpha-carotene, and beta-carotene, as well as significant amounts of vitamin E. A very recent study showed that an extract of avocado containing these carotenoids and tocopherols inhibited the growth of prostate cancer cells. Interestingly, when researchers used lutein alone, the cancer cells were unaffected, thus demonstrating once again that it's the synergy of health-promoting nutrients in whole foods that makes the difference.

HASS AVOCADO and ORAL CANCER

While there are more than 500 varieties of avocados grown worldwide, Hass avocados are the most readily available at supermarkets nationwide. Similar research has not been conducted on other varieties of avocados.

The findings are published online in the journal Seminars in Cancer Biology .

“As far as we know, this is the first study of avocados and oral cancer. “We think these phytochemicals either stop the growth of precancerous cells in the body or they kill the precancerous cells without affecting normal cells. Our study focuses on oral cancer, but the findings might have implications for other types of cancer."

Lead author Steven M. D'Ambrosio, a member of the molecular carcinogenesis and chemoprevention program at Ohio State's Comprehensive Cancer Centre, also wrote an accompanying editorial for the journal, discussing the cancer-fighting potential of fruits and vegetables.

Studies have long associated the consumption of fruits and vegetables with a reduced risk for various types of human cancer. The protective effect is attributed to the high levels of phytonutrients or phytochemicals – plant compounds thought to have health-protecting qualities – that are often found in dark colored fruits and vegetables.

“As far as we know, this is the first study of avocados and oral cancer,” says D'Ambrosio. “We think these phytochemicals either stop the growth of precancerous cells in the body or they kill the precancerous cells without affecting normal cells. Our study focuses on oral cancer, but the findings might have implications for other types of cancer. These are preliminary findings, and more research is needed.”

D'Ambrosio found that phytochemicals extracted from avocados target multiple signaling pathways and increase the amount of reactive oxygen within the cells, leading to cell death in pre-cancerous cell lines. But the phytochemicals did not harm normal cells.

Can alternative therapies disarm and defeat cancer? Here we compile experiences and assertions from patients and therapists across the spectrum, which confirm that healing is possible, especially if you opt for alternative therapies exclusively.
Retired Major General Niranjan Singh Kullar, an 86-year-old cancer survivor, still works 18 hours daily as advisor to the CEO, Imperial Hotel, New Delhi, after more than three decades of army service. His twinkling eyes, upright gait and trim appearance exude energy and vitality. Who would guess that he is a veteran survivor of not one, but two forms of cancer? Or that he cured cancer through holistic, natural methods exclusively, without chemotherapy or radiation? His healing journey proves that miracles indeed happen to those who create them.
In 1971, he had myocarditis, and in 1981, his kidney was removed. In 1984, brain tumour was detected. He had an enlarged prostate gland since 1986. Prostate cancer was diagnosed in 1998 at the age of 77, when the Prostatic Specific Antigen (PSA) test showed a level of 54 ng/dl (normal 0.00 – 4 ng/dl). It was the third stage of cancer. His elder brother and sister had died of cancer.
Major General Kullar advises, “Do not  operate on the cancerous area. I have seen generals dying because of such operations. If you touch the knife to the cancer, the cells multiply and spread like wild fire.”
He used a herbal anti-cancer medicine prescribed by Mangilal Tanwar from Madhya Pradesh. He also followed the nutritional therapy devised by Captain Kailash C Saigal of Interocean Foundation, explained in the book, Down, Down Cancer. “There is scientific proof that certain components in food can provide significant protection against cancer. Food is your medicine and medicine your food,” he explains.
“Exercise, for cancer patients, is medicine. They should walk in the morning and evening for one hour or half an hour. I once had two telephones at the office. I kept them on the floor – one on the right, one on the left. I used to bend and pick them up for exercise,” he adds. He also underlines the importance of positive thinking. “I am never under any stress or tension,” he says.
Major General Kullar’s brain tumour remains harmless due to the anti-cancer regimen. He has been free from prostate cancer for the last six years. Now his PSA test reading is zero.
Cancer encompasses a class of diseases characterized by uncontrolled cell proliferation that can affect all organs. In metastasis, cancer cells multiply and travel through blood and the lymph system to the rest of the body. Cancer in any form remains a dreaded diagnosis, not just because of the looming shadow of death, but also due to the severe side-effects of allopathic treatments like chemotherapy and radiation.
Why Try Holistic Therapies?
According to a Los Angeles Times report, “Over 75 per cent of the oncologists polled said that if they had cancer, they would never use the same chemotherapy they prescribe for their patients, because of the ineffectiveness of chemotherapy, and its unacceptable degree of toxicity.”
Chemotherapy and radiation kill cancer cells, but harm the immune system. The temporarily suppressed cancer often reappears, since the body cannot defend itself with weakened immunity. “How much better it is to nourish the immune system directly by the use of natural therapies to assist it in getting you well, instead of destroying it by the use of these therapies! Then the immune system itself can kill the cancer cells without any side-effects, and heal your body at the same time,” writes Dr Loraine Day, M.D., who cured her breast cancer naturally.
Modern oncology (study of tumours) is based on the Halstead theory by W S Halstead. He focussed on treating and removing tumours to cure cancer. But cancer mortality rate remains unchanged despite advanced surgical techniques and aggressive modern treatments. Halstead’s theory is inadequate because it ignores the patient as a whole living organism.
“While conventional medicine primarily treats cancer as a focal disease with localized symptoms, naturally oriented physicians…view the body as a closed internal ecosystem, and believe that the dysfunction of this ecosystem leads to the development of cancer,” writes Dr Michael Lam, a top US-based physician and author of the book, Beating Cancer With Natural Medicine.
Deepak Chopra, the apostle of Ayurveda and mind/body medicine, in his book, Quantum Healing, asks, “Why, when your body mends a broken arm, is it not considered a miracle, but when your body rids itself of cancer, it is?” Blending advanced physics with ancient Indian Ayurvedic insights, he shows that the human body is governed by a ‘network of intelligence’ grounded in quantum reality. This intelligence exists in our 50 trillion cells, and a cell can heal itself of even cancer. Strengthening of immunity, healthy lifestyle, diet, exercise and access to the Divine consciousness within, through yogic and meditative disciplines, can correct the wrong information that triggers uncontrollable cell multiplication, and cure cancer from the quantum level of the body.
Ayurveda against Cancer
North and South Indian schools of Ayurveda offer time-tested treatments against cancer. As per ayurveda, the human body is governed by the tridosha – vata, pitta and kapha. According to Dr Partap Chauhan of Jiva Ayurveda, Faridabad, “Cancer is the result of the body’s reaction to what aggravates the tridosha.”
Ayurveda suggests sticking to swastha, which includes regular seasonal routines of proper diet and natural lifestyle. When individuals ignore it and indulge in improper food, late nights, overwork, daytime sleep, stimulants, intoxicants, chemical drugs, stress and anxiety, the dosha imbalance starts triggering disease. This weakens the digestive fire (jataragni), causing formation of ama (toxins), which circulates in the body blocking channels (strotas). This causes deformation of channels. “This vicious cycle of aggravation of doshas and ama formation, coupled with deformation of channels, triggers abnormal cell growth, causing cancer,” says Dr Chauhan.
For cancer treatment, Dr Chauhan recommends the following Ayurvedic holistic methods:
• Abstinence from root cause: The first step is avoiding a harmful diet or lifestyle that aggravates the root cause, tridosha imbalance.
• Eliminating aggravated doshas: They are eliminated by flushing them out of the body through panchakarma, involving purifying therapies to enhance metabolic processes. Panchakarma includes five techniques:
Vamana – emetics,
Virecana – laxatives,
Basti – medicated enema,
Nasya – nasal administrations,
Rakta moksana – blood-letting
• Treating jataragni: Jataragni controls digestion and nourishment. It helps the formation of nutritive fluid (ahara rasa), physical elements (doshas), tissues (dhatus) and waste (malas). Treatment maintains healthy jataragni functioning.
• Rejuvenation: Rasayana medicines maintain enzymes and metabolism in peak condition, and enhance the generation of new cells and tissues. Rasayanas prevent and alleviate conditions associated with cancer, and increase ojas to boost immunity and strengthen cells and body.
• Satvavajaya chikitsa: Ayurveda considers mind and body as one entity. Cancer weakens the mind. Spiritual counselling and cultivating a positive, balanced mind are integral to Ayurvedic treatment. “By bringing our internal, physical and psychological systems into balance, we remove the cause of disease, cure its symptoms, and allow the damage to heal itself,” explains Dr Chauhan.
Dr Chauhan has effectively treated cancer patients from India and abroad. Namrata (name changed), 30, had breast cancer. She had surgery and chemotherapy. “I lost weight, hair and appetite, and my skin looked like that of a 65-year-old. I went through it because I had no choice.” She also had sleeping disorder. After a year-and-a-half of treatment, cancer reappeared in 2005. She had another operation. Finally, she heard of Dr Chauhan. He gave Ayurvedic medicines to cure the side-effects of allopathic medicines, strengthen the body, and prevent cancerous cell formation. “I am following the prescribed diet, and regularly taking the Ayurvedic medicines. My tests are normal now. My appetite is good. I am not losing hair. I am feeling energetic,” she says.
Alan Copeland tried Jiva’s Ayunique package. “My prostate, which was oversized, is now that of a healthy adolescent, according to the Western doctors. They don’t know why since their treatments only ‘hold’ the cancer, ” he writes. Jay Golding had non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and was treated by Dr Chauhan. “My PET/CAT scans came back negative! No cancer!” He exclaims.
Ashtavaidya tradition is a unique ancient branch of Kerala Ayurveda. Ashtavaidyas use only purely traditional methods. Ashtavaidyan E T Divakaran Mooss is the chief physician of the Vaidyaraj Oushadha Sala of Ashtavaidyas. He is also the advisor to Maharishi Mahesh Yogi’s Maharishi Ayurvedic University, US. “Cancer is completely curable through Ayurvedic treatment in the Ashtavaidya tradition. I have treated about 100 leukemia patients successfully,” he says. The Ashtavaidya tradition assures complete cure if the patients start treatment early without any damaging modern therapies.
Cancer patients are initially given intensive three months treatment for removing toxins (ama) from the body, to purify and enhance immunity. Revitalised immunity heals cancer. Medicines are chosen according to the patient’s dosha constitution and the cancer condition. Patients must follow prescribed diet and Ayurvedic routine. Panchakarma is used only after the body recovers enough strength through detoxification. Finally, rasayana rejuvenation treatment through kutipravesika or vatatapika therapy is administered. Kutipravesika involves stringent rules and prolonged isolation indoors, which many patients avoid. Vatatapika is speedier and mostly used. Rasayanas are given life-long to prevent recurrence of cancer.
Vaidya Chandra Prakash Cancer Research Foundation treats cancer through medicines based on Ayurvedic rasa shastra (metallic therapy). Vaidya Balendu Prakash, who runs the foundation, first used the treatment on an infant with acute leukemia who had complete cancer remission within 40 days. In 1996, a project by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare studied the effects of his metallic formulations in Acute Pro-myelocytic Leukemia (APML). Ten out of 15 patients enrolled experienced complete remission.
Renowned Ayurvedic specialist, Dr Nandlal Tiwari, Jaipur, Rajasthan, invented the cancer drug Carctol, based on his experiments and information gathered from Assamese tribals. Carctol contains eight herbal ingredients, and has a success rate of 30-40 per cent.
Arya Vaidya Sala, Kottakkal, Kerala, has a clinical research unit in the charitable hospital where 150 cancer patients take treatment weekly. Most patients there use Ayurveda as complementary to allopathy, though some opt for Ayurveda exclusively.