Nutrition & Cancer.

Many cancers can be prevented by good nutrition, and there are a wide range of foods which should be incorporated into your diet to minimise your risk of suffering with cancer. Nutrition is also very important if you have cancer as it can maximise your body's natural defences against cancer.

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Foods Which Can Increase Cancer

Sugars increase insulin resistance, which increases the chance of cancer. So minimising the sugars you eat and drink, either when you add sugar yourself, or eat processed or canned foods which are often high in hidden sugar to enhance flavour, or drink fizzy drinks which have high levels of sugar, are all good ideas.

Refined carbohydrates from grains also have the same effect of increasing insulin resistance, so that all flour products such as bread, pasta and spaghetti can cause problems and are best minimised in your diet, especially if your weight is above normal. This also applies to breakfast cereals, white rice as they also have a high glycemic index and turn to sugar quickly, which your body finds hard to cope with on a regular basis. Potatoes and potato products such as chips and crisps also have the same effect.

The problem with insulin resistance is that it can lead to weight gain, metabolic syndrome, high blood pressure and diabetes, which are all signs that the body is out of balance and more prone to illness in other forms.

Some forms of meat can increase your cancer risk. Burning meat from roasting, grilling or barbecues produces cancer causing chemicals in the burning process, so it is best to remove the outer layers of meat where it has burnt. Some processed, preserved and cured meats also lead to cancer causing chemicals being produced in the gut.

Foods Which Can Reduce Cancer

Getting the right balance of omega-3 fatty acids is important, by increasing the omega-3 fats in your diet from oily fish or flax seed, or taking cod liver oil, fish or krill oil or flax seed oil supplements, and reducing the omega-6 fatty acids from processed foods and most cooking oils such as general vegetable oils, sunflower oil, corn oil, rapeseed oil and soy oil.

Fruit and vegetables reduce the risk of cancer, especially when a variety of them with different colours are eaten. However, because fruits contain a lot of quickly released sugars too many of them can lead to insulin resistance and weight gain. Eating five portions of fruit and veg a day is a very good idea and should be regarded as a minimum rather than a target.

Some fruit and veg have been shown to have specific anti-cancer properties, which include -

Cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussels sprouts) due to their sulforophane content
Tomatoes due to their lycopene content
Green leafy vegetables due to their chlorophyll content
Coloured fruit and veg due to their antioxidant content
Some spices due to their antioxidant content, such as turmeric
Garlic, onions and leeks due to their pungent ingredients

Other nutrients which help reduce cancer include -

Carotenoids, the orange pigments found in carrots, pumpkins and winter squash
Folic acid from green leafy vegetables or folic acid supplements
Probiotics from fermented products such as yoghurt, probiotic drinks (avoid ones with too much sugar) and probiotic supplements
Selenium from Brazil Nuts or selenium supplements
Vitamin B12 from liver
Vitamin C from fruit, vegetables and vitamin C supplements
Vitamin D from sunlight or Vitamin D supplements