Past research has linked deep-fried foods to breast, lung, pancreatic, neck,and esophageal cancers. Now we can add one more to the list. Researchers, from the Public Health Sciences Division of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, write about their findings in the 17 January 2013 online issue of The Prostate.
How much is too much?
According to Janet L. Stanford, Co-director of the Hutchinson Center’s Program in Prostate Cancer Research: “Consuming fried foods more than once a week puts you in the higher risk category.” To me this sounds like you should not eat fried foods at all.
What is Inflammation & Oxidative Stress?
For their study, Stanford and colleagues examined data on 1,549 men diagnosed with prostate cancer and 1,492 age-matched healthy men living in the Seattle area. The researchers found that men who ate French fries, fried chicken, fried fish and/or doughnuts at least once a week had a raised risk for prostate cancer of between 30 and 37%. They also found men who ate these foods as often as this had a slightly higher risk of the more aggressive form of the disease. The research has not been done to determine exactly why these fried foods increase your cancer risk. One thought is that it is known that deep-fried foods contain among the highest levels of advanced glycation endproducts (AGEs), a group of compounds linked to chronic inflammation and oxidative stress, conditions that are associated with cancer (not to mention diabetes, heart attacks, strokes, and pain of all kinds).
Food to the Rescue
There are great foods that reduce oxidative stress and inflammation,. So if you have cancer–or just want to avoid cancer–you can improve your odds by stopping the consumption of cancer-causing food (e.g. white processed sugar!) and replacing it with healthy cancer-inhibiting foods like SALADS with lots of raw onion, and broccoli sprouts…..and/or add raw, unprocessed dark chocolate as a daily supplement. Check out the recent science reported in the British Journal of Nutrition in November of 2012: “Cocao polyphenols prevent inflammation in the colon and in TNF alpha stimulated caco-2 cells in the living (rat) model. Results demonstrate that “cocaopolyphenols suppress inflammation-related colon carcinogenesis and could be promising in the dietary prevention of intestinal inflammation and related cancer development.” There is likely a similar effect to reduce inflammation for the prostate. Yes, inflammation and oxidative stress, which is another way for talking about free radical damage that happens one cell at a time and create damage to the cells’ DNA, these are the enemy. What we need is the antidote! We need antioxidants to reduce/relieve oxidative stress and inflammation.
At Lotus Blossom Clinic, here in sunny, south Fort Myers we can help with a health assessment, meal plan, and treatments. We even have a great superfood supplement which is highly effective in reducing Oxidative stress and inflammation. It’s called Healthy Chocolate, and it’s got the highest rating of any food source we know of (at least as measured by the USDA). Stop by our Change Your Chocolate Party this Friday at 3:30 at the clinic.
We are here to help! Give us a call for a free health and food consultation (239) 277-1399
David Martin & Staff at Lotus Blossom Clinic
Doctor of Oriental Medicine
(239) 277-1399