Eat your cruciferous veggies

by Hesh Goldstein 

(NaturalNews) Before getting into why you should do this, let’s lay out the playing field.

The team is made up of bok choy, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, collard greens, kale, kohlrabi, radishes, rutabaga, turnips, and watercress.

First and foremost, cruciferous veggies contain lots of cancer-crushing compounds like isothiocyanates (ITCs). So, a simple thing like eating these guys raw can protect one from bladder cancer. Out of a random test of 1,400 people, the ones that ate the most ITCs in their diet were less prone to developing bladder cancer, with seniors and smokers getting
the best protection.

Broccoli sprouts, for example, are loaded with ITCs. There was a study done with rats that found that they more they ate the less likely they were to get bladder cancer and if the did, the cancer progressed very slowly.

Then, scientists discovered that the ITCs boosted the enzymes that protected the cells from oxidation. And we know that oxidation contributes to cancer. What happens is that the kidneys process the protective compounds and eventually flush them into the bladder, where they wait for you to go to the bathroom. This means that the ITCs spend lots of time in close contact with the bladder lining, where cancer is most likely to develop.

But cooked cruciferous veggies do not offer the same protection as raw because cooking can destroy the ITCs. What’s good to do is to cut up a variety of these veggies, keep them in the fridge, and snack on them with a bit of hummus or tasty cole slaw.

Broccoli, again, could better your odds of beating breast cancer and radically cut your chance of getting it in the first place. This is what cruciferous veggies do best.

Also, broccoli, cabbage, watercress, kale, cauliflower and the other crucifers are rich in plant compounds called glucosinolates. The bacteria, in your gut, breaks them down into other substances likesulforaphane, indole-3-carbinol, and ITCs, to name a few.

What happens next is these compounds cause cancer cells to commit suicide. This process is known as apoptosis. They also help prevent cancerous changes in your cells and change the way your body uses estrogen, so that less of the hormone fuels cancer growth.

Okay, sulforaphane is an antioxidant that revs up an enzyme in the body that gets rid of dangerous toxins. Therefore, eating the cruciferous veggies rich in it links to lower cancer risk. The people that conduct the studies with sulforaphane, because of its slowing of the growth of breast cancer cells, are hopeful that one day it could prevent estrogen-positive breast cancer.

Then, indole-3-carbinol breaks down further into diindolymethane (DIM), which prohibits two proteins that help breast cancer and ovarian cancer spread through your body. One study found that treating cancer cells with DIM reduced their spread by 80 percent.

The experts say that this could make the current cancer treatments like radiation and chemotherapy more effective, since DIM could stop the cancer from spreading or at least slow it down. DIM also boosts immune function, which may prevent cancer from ever getting stated.

Personally, I cannot believe the “cancer business” would ever consider this because the compound could radically affect their profits.

There is new research that connects crucifers high in ITCs, particularly raw white turnips and bok choy (Chinese cabbage), to a lower risk of breast cancer in postmenopausal women. Younger women benefitted as well, but for a different reason. Premenopausal women with certain types of genes faced a much higher risk of breast cancer than other women. But, if they ate cruciferous veggies, their risk dropped significantly.

You ladies that eat lots of things that had a face and a mother should take special care to pile on the crucifers. Grilling, pan-frying, smoking, barbecuing, and even broiling meat creates PAHs and HCAs, two carcinogens linked to breast cancer.
In one study, the more grilled, barbecued, or smoked meats women ate, the more likely they were to develop breast cancer. And God forbid they ate lots of meat but fewer fruits and vegetables, the cancer risk jumped even higher.

Oh yeah, an interesting note about barbecuing dead, rotting flesh – the fat from the dead whatever that drips down onto the charcoal instigates a chemical called benzoapryne that flows upward and covers the dead body. When you eat it it’s as if you just smoked a carton of cigarettes at one time. Do you think that cancer could arise from this?

So, loading your plate with lots of fruits and veggies, particularly those rich in ITCs like crucifers, could possibly offset some of that risk if you are a meat-lover. White turnips, for example, are a great source. Raw, they contain an incredible 17 times more ITCs than bok choy.

Watercress comes in with a close second with 16 times more ITCs than bok choy.

Then there are Brussels sprouts. These along with broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower can all protect you from colon cancer. They all contain a natural plant compound called glucobrassicin, which breaks down in your belly into indole-3-carbinol (I3C).
Yeah, it’s hard to pronounce but gets digested even further, eventually turning into DIM. Evidence shows that DIM is behind the cancer-protection afforded by brassicas.

Tumors develop for two reasons:

1. Damaged cells multiply uncontrollably, forming tumors.
2. Damaged cells stop responding to signals your body sends them, telling them to die.

Certain compounds, such as DIM, help damaged cells to die when they should, so they don’t keep multiplying and turn cancerous. That’s why experts now think that eating brassicas like broccoli and Brussels sprouts may prevent colon cancer from developing and even slow the growth of existing cancer. That, in turn, could make traditional treatments more effective. Best of all, DIM does this without causing side effects, unlike medications.

How you eat them matters, though. The amount of protection you get from food depends partly upon how you prepare it.

Crucifers can lose 30 to 60 percent of their cancer-fighting compounds during cooking, but different methods yield different results. One study found that cooking red cabbage over low heat on the stove or lightly steaming it actually increased the cancer-fighting power.

Raw, however, may be the way to go. Rats that ate raw fresh watercress, green cabbage, and broccoli for nearly four months had fewer colon cancer markers than rats on regular diets.

Juicing does not work according to the study as vegetable juice had no effect on cancer in an animal study, nor did supplements made from the protective compounds in the vegetables.

Simple cabbage has surprising healing properties that combat infectious skin problems, strengthen weak bones, and lessen arthritis pain because cabbage and other cruciferous veggies have two nutrients that improve osteoarthritis pain and keep the disease from getting worse.

*Vitamin C reacts with iron to build healthy joint cartilage and antioxidants like vitamin C also keep you from losing cartilage and slows the progression of osteoarthritis (OA). In one study, people who got lots of vitamin C were less likely to have knee pain or see their OA get worse, while those in another study had fewer and smaller bone marrow lesions, which are the markers of arthritis, joint pain, and worsening OA.

*Cabbage and its fellow crucifers are also chock-full of vitamin K, which regulates the growth of bone and cartilage. Seniors, for example, with higher blood levels of vitamin K had fewer signs of hand and knee OA, in one study. The researchers feel that too little vitamin K may lead to shrinking cartilage and the growth of bone spurs common in arthritis.

*If ever the time came that we could go back to manure as fertilizer, most of there afflictions could be alleviated. But since the Rockefellers control the petro-chemical fertilization, that chance is slim. Thousands of people are attesting to the fact that the organic sulfur crystals relieve one of this agonizing joint pain.

Besides building cartilage, vitamin C may directly affect your bone health. It is a key part of the proteins that form collagen, one of the building blocks of bone, ligaments, tendons, and teeth. Plus, it stimulates your body to make bone cells.
In postmenopausal women, higher vitamin C is associated with greater bone mineral density, an indicator of bone strength.

Vitamin K is essential in building osteocalcin, another major protein in bones. A shortage of vitamin K weakens your bones, and studies link low-K diets to lower bone mass density (BMD) and a higher risk of bone fracture.

If, however, you boost your vitamin K intake, it keeps you from losing calcium through urine, reduces the amount of bone your body breaks down, and increases the amount of bone in your body. In a 10-year study, women who got the least vitamin K in their diets were 30 percent more likely to fracture their hip, while other research found that men and women who got the most vitamin k were 65 percent less likely to fracture a hip.

As early as the 1930s, scientists realized vitamin C helped heal cold sores and other lesions caused by the Herpes simplex virus. Further research showed it could help heal outbreaks twice as fast as simply waiting, probably because it enhances your immune system and fights viruses.

When it comes to vitamin K, ordinary boiled cabbage is best. Just half a cup of cooked cabbage meets 100 percent of your daily K needs, not to mention almost half your vitamin C requirements, in only 17 calories.

If you want more vitamin C, start adding raw red cabbage to salads and cole slaws as a cup of chopped cabbage provides 85 percent of the day’s vitamin C and about 40 percent of your vitamin K, all in only 28 calories.

Back to broccoli. It has two powerful cruciferous chemicals that can amp up your rundown immune system, to ward off viruses and keep you healthier throughout the year.

When you sit down to a meal with broccoli, cabbage, or kale, you are helping your immune system to fight off infections. DIM, one of the compounds formed when you digest these foods, pumps up your immune system by increasing cytokines, the proteins that help regulate immune cells, increase more macrophages, which are immune cells that help kill bacteria and tumor cells, and increase two-fold the number of white blood cells, which fight off infection by killing the bugs attacking your body.

Again, sulforaphane boosts the immune system as well. It increases the killer immune cells, helps produce more cytokines and lymphocytes, and stimulates other parts other parts of the immune system. What’s more, certain crucifers like broccoli are excellent sources of vitamin C, another virus-busting nutrient. Try some broccoli or Brussels sprouts with a
meal to ward off a sickness instead of turning to synthetic meds.

Last but not least, cauliflower. Eating cauliflower at least once a week is effective in protection from deadly forms of prostate cancer. Crucifers are full of natural cancer-fighting compounds, including ITCs, indoles, and sulforaphane, which help protect the genetic material in your cells from damage.

What’s more, broccoli is high in phenols, the plant substances that boost your immune system and stamp out dangerous compounds that can lead to cancerous changes in your body. Anyway, here are what crucifers like broccoli and cauliflower can do for your prostate.

They can evade aggressive cancers if eaten more than once a week and they can shrink prostate tumors. And if tomatoes and broccoli are eaten together, they combine to create more of an impact because of the heavy natural cancer-fighting properties in them.

To gain optimum benefit you should eat about one-and-a-half cups of broccoli daily, along with two-and-a-half-cups of fresh tomatoes, or one cup of tomato sauce, or half a cup of tomato paste.

To be and stay healthy, it may be necessary to alter the way you eat.

First, you need to severely minimize your flesh intake. Next, you should eat as much organically grown produce as possible and eliminate all GMOs (bear in mind all flesh foods the walk or crawl are fed GMOs in their feed).

If you sprinkle some curry on your cauliflower it does wonders. PEITC, a compound in cruciferous veggies, and curcumin, a compound in curry seasoning, can stop new prostate tumors from developing and stop existing ones from spreading.

Then chew or chop your veggies because the PEITC and other ITCs form when the plant’s cells get crushed up during chewing or chopping. Be sure to chew the crucifers thoroughly so they turn to saliva in your mouth and you wind up drinking them. That way you’ll get the most prostate protection.

Last but not least, did you ever see Technicolor cauliflower?

You can now buy cauliflower in purple, orange and green. For real! The purple one are loaded with anthocyanin, the same phytochemical found in red grapes and red wine; the orange ones are loaded with beta carotene to the tune of about 25 times more than the white; and the green take the cake with more vitamins C and A.

Bon appetit!

Aloha!

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Six of the best foods for diabetics

by PF Louis 

(NaturalNews) There are two forms of diabetes: Type one and type two. Both types involve imbalanced blood sugar and insulin issues. Insulin is the hormone that helps convert glucose into the cellular energy that’s needed for the cells to metabolize nutrients.

Type one diabetes is sometimes called juvenile diabetes because it usually occurs early in life. The pancreas doesn’t produce any or enough insulin and usually needs to be supplied externally.

That often means insulin injections by manual syringe, or an easier managed insulin injection pen, insulin pills, or a portable insulin pump.

The pancreas is usually functioning with type two diabetes, which normally occurs later in life. However, the body is insulin resistant, or not using the insulin well enough. Type two diabetes can often be controlled by exercise and diet while monitoring blood sugar.

Again, chronically high blood sugar is an indicator for both types of diabetes. But sometimes low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) occurs, especially with type two diabetes.

Many diabetic symptoms cross over with adrenal and thyroid issues as well as fibromyalgia. So it’s best to get your blood sugar tested to determine whether or not your health problems are diabetes related.

Foods for diabetics

Obviously, foods with high glycemic indexes (GI) need to be avoided. Those include refined starches and carbohydrates, sugar, high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) honey, maple syrup, candies, cakes, and cookies. Synthetic sugar substitutes cook your brain cells.

Unsweetened fruit juices are short-term solutions for low blood sugar (hypoglycemia), but should be avoided unless diluted if one suffers from high blood sugar.

Did you know that many foods from fast food restaurants and processed foods off the shelf contain sugars even if they’re not meant to be sweet? Avoid them all. Buy bulk organic as much as possible.

(1) Veggies, especially greens, are items you can eat every day. Steamed veggies and raw salads are nutritionally beneficial for anyone and certainly if you have a low glycemic index.

Off-the-shelf salad dressings often contain sugar or other sweeteners. Use only unprocessed cold-pressed virgin vegetable oils, except soy, and vinegar or lemon/lime.

(2) Slice some avocado into your salad for taste variety and good nutrition. Avocados have low GIs. Avocados’ high omega-3 content contributes to healing chronic inflammation, which is often associated with diabetes; leading to other serious diseases.

Avocados are an excellent plant source of protein. (http://www.naturalnews.com/029864_avocados_health.html)

(3) Walnuts are also a good low GI source of omega-3. You can sprinkle them onto salads or veggies for a tasty change. Most other unsalted, raw nuts are also okay for diabetics. (http://www.naturalnews.com/032772_walnuts_omega-3s.html)

(4) Fresh wild (not farmed) fish, especially tuna or cold water salmon, are another high source of omega-3 with very low GI levels. All other meats are low GI high protein sources, if you are so inclined.

Then try to stick with grazing grass-fed livestock or poultry that’s free range, both to stem the excessive animal cruelty and avoid consuming the toxic antibiotics and hormones injected into factory farm animals.

(5) Grains are tricky. Obviously avoiding processed grains is necessary. But some whole grains have a higher GI (glycemic index) than you would think. Whole wheat is one of them. Quinoa and buckwheat are good substitutes. (http://www.naturalnews.com/036845_wheat_belly_weight_gain_gluten.html)

Organic brown rice may work for some diabetics since it is a complex carbohydrate that doesn’t convert to glucose rapidly. But most experts recommend diabetics not make brown rice an everyday meal.

(6) Various legumes (beans) can be added to a dish of brown rice for a delicious entree. Beans are high protein and fiber with lower GIs than potatoes. They can also be mixed in with veggies or prepared as a side dish. (http://www.naturalnews.com/025175_cancer_WHO_risk.html)

Sources for this article include:

http://www.ehow.com/about_5372662_safe-foods-diabetics.html

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To Eat Organic or Not: Fruits and Veggies

 

by Paul Apple

What’s the only thing no-neck meatheads and patchouli-scented hippies have in common? We’re both interested in organic food and the effects on our health and performance. (Well, maybe the hippies don’t care about performance….)

People buy organic food for many reasons: to reduce the toxic load on their body, to eat more nutritious foods, to be environmentally friendly, and to support local and/or sustainable farms. In this article we’re gonna save the moral dilemma of organic vs. conventional food for your ethics class or Greenpeace rally and instead ask the question: is organic produce better for us?

Organic Schmorganic. What’s It Mean?

In 1900, the amount of organic food being consumed was considerably high, since almost none of it was treated with pesticides. In 1945, two hundred thousand pounds of artificial pesticides were sprayed on US food. In 2002, two billion pounds were sprayed. (I could delve into a hodgepodge of maladies and chronic diseases that have also been on a rapid rise over the same time period, but I won’t as it’s damn near impossible for scientists to make definitive correlations with diseases since there are too many uncontrollable variables.)

To get a USDA Certified Organic seal a producer must be a licensed organic farmer, and must adhere to the following guidelines: no use of synthetic pesticides, herbicides, or fertilizers, no use of genetically modified seeds, no use of sewer-sludge fertilizer, and no use of irradiation treatments. They also must be inspected regularly and let the inspectors onto their farms at any time.

Despite what some Internet doom-and-gloomers would have you believe, the USDA Certified Organic seal does mean something. However, it’s under constant attack from agribusiness lobbyists who are funded by powerful conventional farming conglomerates. Most of these attacks have been thwarted in court.

(The only successful one I know of was in 2006 when a Congressional agricultural bill was passed allowing the use of non-organic ingredients when organic ingredients were not available. The bill allows companies to still display the USDA Certified Organic seal on the package. This, however, doesn’t affect organic produce since they’re not packaged, processed food products.)

We already know that people who eat conventional foods have higher levels of artificial pesticides in their bodies. This issue thus boils down to personal belief: do you believe that your long-term health and performance will suffer from having higher levels of artificial pesticides accumulating in your body? If you answered “yes,” I’ll have a few strategies for you below to keep your sanity (and wallet) intact while grocery shopping. If you answered “no”, well, you should keep reading anyway, because the next question is a doozy.

Is Organic Produce More Nutritious than Conventional Produce?

Plants produce their own natural pesticides in order to survive in the wild. These are of no negative health concern to humans as we have evolved to not only be immune to the adverse effects, but actually benefit from some of them, too.

If foods are grown without artificial pesticides, fungicides, and insecticides, it stands to reason that fewer artificial pesticides will get into the soil and water, into the crops and, consequently, into our bodies. The literature is fairly conclusive that people who eat organics have less artificial pesticides in their bodies (which is probably a good thing).

But the big question remains: Is organic produce more nutritious than conventionally grown produce?

The answer: kinda. The vast majority of studies have concluded that, at best, organics are only slightly more nutritious. The nutritional content of any produce item is highly dependent upon its ripeness level, and whether or not it was grown in season. Any possible increase in vitamin and mineral content gained from organic growing standards will be minimal when compared to its conventionally grown counterpart.

One point that isn’t often brought up in the literature, however, is phytochemical content. Phytochemicals are the health promoting (cancer fighting, antioxidant, etc.) components of plants. There are several thousand known phytochemicals, and probably countless others that have yet to be discovered. Soil contains many microorganisms that play a key role in generating the nutrition to feed and provide much of the immune system of the plant. Artificial pesticides kill off many of these beneficial microorganisms.

Most certainly this will have a detrimental effect on the phytochemical content of conventionally grown produce. So while the only slightly increased nutritional content of organics may not be enough to get your panties wet, the possible increased phytochemical content may.

What Kinds of Fruits and Veggies Should You Buy Organic?

Some produce grow fine with only a minimal amount of pesticides and also may have fewer threats from pests. So you can still significantly reduce your exposure to artificial pesticides by buying a few choice organic items and the rest conventionally grown.

Here’s a list of produce that you ought to purchase organic due to high levels of contamination:pears, apples, strawberries (most berries), nectarines, cherries, bell peppers, coffee, celery, lettuce, spinach, grapes, raisins, potatoes, and tomatoes.

(Coffee is the big one here. It’s been stated that if you were to buy only one thing organic, you better make it coffee since most of it is grown in third-world countries where the laws are less stringent and many use harmful pesticides such as DDT, which is a known carcinogen and outlawed in the US.)

Pears and apples have the highest levels of contamination of all produce, and apples are the second most commonly eaten fruit in the US.

Some produce presents very little risk of contamination to you, and can thus be bought conventionally: asparagus (fewer pest threats), avocados, bananas, broccoli (fewer pest threats), cabbage (requires less spraying to grow), sweet corn, sweet peas, cauliflower, kiwi, mango, onions (less pest threats), papaya, and pineapple. Obviously, eating all organic produce would reduce your exposure to pesticides the most, but by sticking to the above lists, you can be sure to get the most bang for your organic buck.

It’s important to note that all produce should be thoroughly rinsed before cutting into it or eating it. This includes thick-skinned produce like pineapples and avocados. Germs, microbes, and artificial pesticides are caked onto the outside of produce. If you don’t rinse before cutting into them, then you’re simply pushing the bad stuff inside to the edible portion.

The Bottom Line on Organic Produce

Currently, the USDA Certified Organic seal is something you can trust. Eeating conventional produce does cause artificial pesticides to accumulate in the human body. Whether this is of any health or performance concern is up to you to decide for yourself. However, you shouldn’t buy organic produce to get more nutritious food, but rather to minimize your exposure to artificial pesticides, and for the possible increased phytochemical content.

If you’re a broke college-student or just a tightwad, at least buy organic coffee, apples, and pears, and remember to thoroughly rinse all produce (even thick skinned organic ones) before cutting into or eating.

Most importantly, remember that even a highly contaminated conventional apple will still do a number of wonderful things for your body. As Dr. John Berardi has so eloquently stated, just eat the damn fruit!

Paul Apple is an aspiring firefighter/paramedic who has a keen interest in maximizing human physical performance. He is currently finishing paramedic school, and holds degrees in Physical Education & Health and Fire Science. He can be reached at A1HumanPerfomance@gmail.com

References:

Liponis, Mark M.D., and Mark Hyman M.D. Ultraprevention. New York: Scribner, 2003

Nestle, Marion. What to Eat. New York: North Point Press, 2006

Perry, Luddene, and Dan Schultz. A Field Guide to Buying Organic. Bantam, 2007

Schultz, Dan, and Luddene Perry. A field Guide to Buying Organic. Bantam, 2005

Simopoulos, Artemis P. M.D., and Jo Robinson. The Omega Diet. New York: Harper Collins, 1999

Stewart, Kimberly L. Eating Between the lines: The Supermarket Shopper’s Guide to the Truth Behind Food Labels. St Martin’s Griffin, 2007

Common sense alert: wash your vegetables before you eat them

There’s a reason they wear masks when spraying pesticides on crops…

Coffee, possibly the most contaminated with harmful pesticides, is something you should definitely buy organic

USDA Organic Logo

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