Eat your curry, folks. Various scientific studies have shown that a chemical found in certain spicy, yellow dishes can suppress tumours, and that people who eat LOTS of curry may be less prone to developing cancer. Recently, in yet another study, scientists have found that the bright yellow spice turmeric can indeed kill off cancer cells.

Turmeric root and powder

Researchers at the Cork Cancer Research Centre in Ireland treated oesophageal cancer cells with curcumin, a chemical found in turmeric. Within 24 hours the curcumin started to kill cancer cells. The study, which was published in the British Journal of Cancer, reported that the cancer cells also began to digest themselves.

Cancers of the oesophagus take the lives of more than half-a-million people worldwide each year. It is so deadly that five-year survival rates are just 12-31%

Turmeric has traditionally been used for healing by many Asian communities. It is even applied to wounds, sores and rashes to facilitate healing. Currently, it is being tested as a treatment for arthritis and even dementia.

Don’t’ take too long to eat your curry, though. Curcumin loses its anti-cancer properties quickly when ingested. If you prefer to consume curcumin rather than turmeric, Neways powerful antioxidant supplements, Revenol and Cascading Revenol, contain this extract from the turmeric root, as well as White Pine Bark extract, Grape Seed extract, Gingko Leaf extract, and Maritime Pine Bark extract. Cascading Revenol has additional cancer-fighting ingredients like CoQ10.

Posted: November 21st, 2009 under Alternative Remedies, Antioxidants, Cancer, Healing Foods, Wound Healing.
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Aromatase is an enzyme produced in the body that is needed for the final step in the production of estrogen as part of the hormonal cascade during which hormones are made from other hormones in a series of conversions. This enzyme converts androgen to estrogen. Aromatase is expressed at a higher level in breast cancer tissue than in benign tissue. Estrogen biosynthesis can be suppressed by the prevention of aromatase expression in breast tumors or by the inhibition of aromatase activity. Without the aromatase enzyme, excessive production of estrogen stalls. This process is what makes aromatase inhibitors effective against hormone-sensitive tumor growth.

High estrogen levels are a well-known risk for breast cancer. Many breast cancers depend on estrogen to grow. In fact, seventy per cent of diagnosed breast cancers express Estrogen Receptor alpha (ER{alpha}) and are, therefore, likely to be hormone-responsive. Apart from commercial and synthetic aromatase inhibitors, where can you find natural sources of such inhibitors?

Natural aromatase inhibitors include flavonoids, flavones, flavanones, isoflavones, resveratrol, oleuropein and linoleic acid. These are healing foods for breast cancer and other hormone-sensitive diseases. If you have estrogen-dominant cancer, increase your consumption of whole foods containing aromatase inhibitors like:

Quercetin
Cabbage, kale, brussel sprouts, onions and garlic, citrus fruits, apples, parsley, tea, and red wine are the primary dietary sources of quercetin. Olives and olive oil, grapes, black currants, cranberries, dark cherries, and dark berries such as blueberries, blackberries, bilberries, lingonberries and red raspberries are also high in flavonoids, including quercetin. Quercetin seems to work better when used in conjunction with bromelain, a digestive enzyme found in pineapples.

Chrysin
This is a flavonoid from the passion flower plant, bee propolis, bee pollen and raw honey. Chrysin has poor bioavailability so it is normally taken as a supplement along with piperine (from black pepper) which greatly enhances its bioavailability.

Naringenin
This is found in all citrus fruits, like orange, tangerine, lemon and lime. Avoid obtaining it from grapefruit or grapefruit juice, which has an inhibitory effect on the human cytochrome P450 isofrom, another enzyme in the same complex as the aromatase enzyme. This enzyme is involved in breaking down and metabolizing sex hormones and preventing their excess accumulation in the body, so inhibiting it will allow estrogen levels to rise.

Apigenin
Dietary sources include celery, parsley, artichokes, basil, chamomile, thyme, peppermint, gingo biloba, and other herbs like horsetail herb, lemon balm herb, perilla herb, vervain herb, and yarrow. The highest concentrations of apigenin seem to be in chamomile and thyme.

Genistein
This is an isoflavone found in herbs like red clover (the herb of Hippocrates), parsley, sage, green vegetables, fruits and particularly pulses and legumes like chick peas and beans, and soy. Soy and soy foods contain high amounts of plant estrogens or phytoestrogens. These estrogens are very weak and have almost no harmful effects. They compete with the estrogen receptor sites in the body, and prohibit the more potent and harmful estrogen. Phytoestrogens are only 1/500th as potent as estradiol, the most dangerous form of estrogen. The body senses the estrogen level to be high and stimulates the P450 system in the liver to metabolize the estrogen. This helps keep estrogen levels where they should be. There is some controversy about whether soy is protective against breast cancer or promotes it. Much depends on variables like genes. Asians have a long history of soy consumption and their bodies process it far more efficiently than Westerners.

Diadzein
Another isoflavone found in soy products. Genistein accounts for approximately 50% of total soy isoflavones, whereas daidzein accounts for about 40%.

Oleuropein
Oleuropein gives olive oil its distinctive flavor, It is found in abundance in the leaves of the olive tree.

Resveratrol
Good sources are the skin and seeds of red grapes, grape seed extract, and black and red berries. Muscadine grapes, often used to make red wine, have the highest content. Although supplements of resveratrol are popular and widely available, getting resveratrol from red wine allows you to get the entire grape polyphenol group of nutrients, a group that has been shown to work much better synergistically. Breast tumor growth and metastasis to bone and liver have been shown to be better inhibited by the complete grape polyphenol complex.

Linoleic Acid
An essential fatty acid from the Omega-6 family, linoleic acid can be found in common mushrooms like button mushrooms, shitake, portabello and crimin, as well as vegetables, fruits, nuts, grains and seeds. Good sources are oils made from safflower, sunflower, corn, soya, evening primrose, pumpkin, olives and wheat germ. In a study conducted by Dr. Shiuan Chen of the Beckman Research Institute of the City of Hope in Duarte, California, it was found that in laboratory and animal experiments, mushroom extracts reduced the proliferation of breast cancer cells. This study also surmised that it is the linoleic acid that may be responsible for the anti-cancer effects.

Interestingly, the study also found that white button mushrooms suppressed production of the enzyme 5-alpha reductase. This enzyme plays a big role in development of prostate cancer.

Progesterone
A popular source is wild yam extract cream for topical application, such as Neways’ “Endau” progesterone cream. A study (Formby and Wiley, Journal Nat. Cancer Inst. June 7997) shows that natural progesterone actually inhibits growth and induces cell death in breast cancer cells by affecting p53 and Bcl-2 gene expression.

This followed work by Chang, Lee et al (Fertility and Sterility vol 63 7995) that showed that whilst oestradiol (the most potent oestrogen hormone) increases the number of cycling epitbelial cells, natural progesterone actually decreases them. The study further states that natural progesterone secretion suppresses oestradiol receptors in both the endometrium and breast tissue, and has an anti-oestrogen effect (just as, for example, the latest aromatase inhibitors aim to do), but that very high concentrations of synthetic progestins can stimulate human breast cancer cells.

Zinc
The best sources are wheat germ, oysters and liver, Less zinc-rich sources include meat, sesame, sunflower and pumpkin seeds, nuts like pecans and brazils, spinach, mushrooms etc.

Those searching for an aromatase-inhibiting diet may wish to take a closer look at the Mediterranean diet, Fresh fruits, vegetables, olive oil and red wine are components of this diet, the one diet that has consistently correlated with lower death rates from all causes. Flavonoids from each of these foods inhibit aromatase activity to reduce incidence of breast cancer.

A final thought: the aromatase enzyme resides in fat cells. It is no surprise that being overweight and obese is linked with breast and other hormone-sensitive cancers. Fewer fat cells in the body means that less unbalanced estrogen is produced. High levels of insulin, a big factor in weight gain and fat mass accumulation, promote production of the aromatase enzyme. Avoiding processed foods and foods with chemicals helps keep insulin levels under control, in turn resulting in lower levels of aromatase and as a consequence, lower levels of unbalanced estrogen in the body.

Posted: October 18th, 2009 under Alternative Remedies, Cancer, Diet, Healing Foods, Hormone Health.
Comments: 4

Morinda citrifolia, Indian mulberry, cheese fruit, beach mulberry – these are some of the other names of the noni plant. ‘Noni’ is a Hawaiian term. Originally from Southeast Asia, the noni plant grows in many parts of the world, including much of Polynesia and other tropical and subtropical countries.

Interestingly, noni’s Sanskrit name is Ayushka, meaning longevity. Indeed, virtually every part of the noni fruit and plant has been used for its medicinal properties. Noni fruit has a pungent smell, but it can also be eaten raw with salt. It is also cooked as curry by many of the tribal populations of Southeast Asia, Polynesia and Australia. The seeds of the noni fruit can be roasted and eaten. The protein-rich young leaves of the noni plant are sometimes eaten as vegetable as well. The leaves are also used as poultices.

It is traditionally believed that noni:

- stabilizes cholesterol at normal levels
- increases energy when consumed over a period of time
- delivers abundant antioxidants to scavenge free radicals
- helps maintain the immune system
- helps maintain a healthy heart
- supports a healthy cardiovascular system
- reduces inflammation
- enhances energy and wellbeing

The noni fruit is packed with vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals, amino acids and antioxidants. Over 150 nutraceuticals have been found in the noni fruit, including all the B vitamins, 18 amino acids, antioxidants such as vitamin C, beta carotene, calcium, linoleic acid, and minerals like magnesium, iron and potassium. Noni fruit contains a number of phytochemicals, including lignans, oligo- and polysaccharides, flavonoids, iridoids, fatty acids, scopoletin, catechin, beta-sitosterol, damnacanthal, and alkaloids.

What is particularly significant is that a rare compound known as proxeronine, a precursor of xeronine, essential for the regeneration and growth of healthy cells, is found in the noni fruit. Noni also contains an anthraquinone compound called damnacanthal, which has promising anti-cancer properties. The journal CANCER LETTER [73 (2-3) 1993, 161-166], reported that Keio University and The Institute of Biomedical Sciences in Japan observed that damnacanthal caused normal morphology and cystoskeletal structure in K-ras-NRK pre-cancer cells. Put simply, this compound found in noni fruit may possibly turn pre-cancer cells into normal healthy cells. The researchers reported that damnacanthal reversed the proliferation of cancer cells, showing an ability to block or inhibit the cellular function of RAS cells, which are considered pre-cancerous cells.

The Cancer Research Center of Hawaii has been studying noni juice health benefits with regard to cancer treatments, since a 1999 study suggested that Noni Juice helped to stop the growth of tumors. Laboratory studies have examined noni’s effect on the growth of cancerous tissue in mice. One such study in vitro found that noni reduced growth of capillary vessels sprouting from human breast tumor explants and, at increased concentrations, caused existing vessels to degenerate.

Research indicates that noni fruit stimulates the immune system, regulating cell function and cellular regeneration of damaged cells. As the Noni fruit seems to operate at the very basic and critical cellular level, noni may help to heal a wide variety of conditions.

Noni juice also contains a precursor to melanin, which enhances all body functions depending on melanin. This could explain why the prolific consumption of noni juice has been reported to reverse diabetes, macular degeneration, multiple sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease in some people.

The strong odor of the noni fruit as well as its bitter taste may make noni difficult to consume in its raw form. Fortunately, pleasant-tasting noni juice is available from some manufacturers of health supplements. While noni juice from the Polynesian islands of Hawaii and Tahiti is well-known, noni fruit grown in Hawaii is said to be the best because of the pure air, water, and volcanic soil in which they are grown. Neways Authentic Hawaiian Noni dietary supplement, for instance, uses 100 percent pure Hawaiian noni, grown far from areas where nuclear testing occurred near Tahiti in the Marquesas Islands of French Polynesia.

For the highest quality noni health supplement and best results, always choose noni products which are never fumigated with deadly chemicals or irradiated, and grown without pesticides. The authenticity of the noni product must be guaranteed by its manufacturer and should use only the Noni fruit pulp, not other parts of the noni plant.

Besides noni fruit puree, Neways Authentic Hawaiian Noni juice is enhanced with raspberry and blueberry fruit concentrate, as well as momordica fruit extract. Red raspberry delivers high levels of ellagic acid, a powerful, natural substance that supports the body’s defence mechanisms against carcinogens. Blueberry has powerful antioxidants proven to scavenge free radicals that can damage DNA molecules and lead to cancer. Mormodica fruit is an antioxidant and immune system booster which has been popular with the Chinese for centuries. You can find it in Chinese medicine shops and groceries, where it is usually better known as “lo han kuo”.

Neways Authentic Hawaiian Noni is as pure as it gets, with no added sugars, no added preservatives, colors or artificial flavors. If you can’t stomach the natural taste and smell of noni fruit, this delicious, power-packed cocktail will help you get the goodness of noni into your body. Buy it at the wholesale price here.

Posted: September 4th, 2009 under Antioxidants, Cancer, Healing Foods, Health Supplements, Immune System Health.
Comments: 1