Prostate cancer continues to be one of the most prominent forms of the disease, accounting for more than 235,000 diagnoses each year in the U.S. alone, with nearly 30,000 deaths. As with many forms of cancer, prostate cancer is the result of years and decades of lifestyle transgressions such as smoking, lack of physical activity, exposure to environmental and household toxins, and most importantly, the typical American diet consisting of fried foods, sugars and meats, grilled or blackened, using high-heat cooking sources.
A research team associated with the Cambridge University Hospital System in the United Kingdom provides scientifically validated evidence that broccoli, turmeric, green tea and pomegranate help fight prostate cancer, the most common cancer in men. While in the past, polyphenol-rich foods have been shown to exert multiple anti-cancer effects in laboratory tests using mice, this the first time they have demonstrated an influence on markers of cancer progression within a double-blind scientific evaluation.
To conduct this study, researchers divided 203 men with prostate cancer into two groups, one receiving a specially extracted supplement containing bioactive compounds from the four identified natural foods sources and the other receiving a placebo. All took their assigned capsule each day for a period of six months, and made no other significant dietary or lifestyle changes. A baseline PSA test was completed at the outset of the study, and again at the end of the study period.
PSA tests have come under scrutiny recently because they are over-utilized and may lead to more aggressive treatments (unnecessary surgery, radiation and toxic medications) in men without a more invasive form of the disease.
PSA does test for inflammatory antigens that are released by the prostate when cancer is present, and in this study provided an accurate measurement of disease’s progression. Scientists found that PSA levels were 63 percent lower among those men taking the supplement containing the active forms of pomegranate, turmeric, green tea and broccoli as compared to those in the placebo group.
Three independent researches conducted between 2004 and 2009 identified green tea, turmeric, and tomato and broccoli combined as the top “superfoods” against prostate cancer. Wisconsin researchers, headed by Vagar Mustafa Adhami, offered substantial evidence that polyphenols from green tea are effective in the prevention and treatment of cancer of the prostate. Meanwhile, researchers from Kentucky, led by Damodaran Chendil, disclosed the efficacy of curcumin, the main component of turmeric, as a radiosensitizer. Likewise, Kristie Canene-Adams and her team of scientists from Illinois and Ohio documented the effectiveness of the tomato-broccoli combination against the disease dreaded by men.
Check out these top “superfoods” to help fight prostate cancer:
Green Tea Polyphenols
The glyco-protein secreted by the prostate gland, called prostate-specific antigen (PSA), is the most clinically used marker in the detection of prostate cancer. The level of PSA serum is reduced by agents that lower the level of testosterone. Such agents include leutenizing hormone-releasing hormone agonists, antagonists and anti-androgens, as well as 5a-reductase inhibitors.
Green tea is considered a “superfood” against this type of cancer, because its polyphenol content is capable of decreasing PSA levels in human prostate cancer cells in a culture medium. The effect of the moderately water-soluble polyphenols on PSA levels is dose-dependent. Additionally, its constituent, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), also contributes to its efficacy against prostate and other forms of cancer.
Curcumin in Turmeric
Curcumin is a natural carotenoid and polyphenol which may be isolated from Curcuma longa or turmeric, a rhizome. Owing to their structure, carotenoids are scavengers of free radicals, which make them great anti-oxidants and boosters of the immune system of vertebrates, humans included. Curcumin is also an effective antibacterial agent and anti-carcinogenic. Studies have demonstrated that curcumin inhibits the growth of a number of tumors when used in combination with radiation therapy. In prostate cancer, curcumin overcomes the effect of prosurvival gene expression induced by the exposure of cancer cells to radiation.
Tomato and Broccoli: The Phytochemical-Polyphenol Tandem
Although the Canene-Adams, et al. study was performed in rats, the results are encouraging, because tomato alone and broccoli alone reduced the tumor growth by only 34% and 42%, respectively. However, when tomato and broccoli were combined in diet, proliferation of tumors decreased by 52%. This finding provided scaffold to earlier recommendations from public health authorities to increase their intake of nutrients from a variety of plant sources. In this respect, combining tomato and brocc
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