With Ocober being Breast Cancer Awareness month, there’s a good chance you have worn pink, donated time or money to a cancer charity or foundation, or learned more about Cancer treatment breakthroughs.Once a rare disease, cancer is now widespread, affecting as much as one-third of the population.
Here is something else to be aware of:
Nutrients in whole foods can protect against cancer.
The following information is reprinted from the Weston A. Price Foundation:
- The rise in cancer in the West has paralleled the rise in factory farming and the use of processed foods containing vegetable oils and additives.
- Traditional diets, containing animal and plant foods, farmed by nontoxic methods, are rich in factors that protect against cancer.
- Many of these protective factors are in the animal fats.
- A diet containing these cancer-fighting foods can improve the outcome of those suffering from cancer, whether the patient is using conventional or alternative treatments.
- Vegetarianism does not protect against cancer. In fact, vegetarians are particularly prone to cancers of the nervous system and the reproductive organs.
The following Nutrients in Whole Foods protect against cancer:
Vitamin A: Strengthens the immune system. Is essential for mineral metablolism and endocrine function. It also helps detoxify. True vitamin A is found only in animal foods such as cod liver oil; fish and shellfish; and liver, butter, and egg yolks from pasture-fed animals. Traditional diets contained 10 times more vitamin A than the typical modern diet.
Vitamin C: This is an important antioxidant that prevents damage by free radicals. Vitamin C is found in many fruits and vegetables, an also in certain organ meats.
Vitamin B6 and Vitamin B12: Deficiencies of these nutrients are associated with cancer. Both are found in animal foods.
Vitamin B17: Protects against cancer and found in a variety of organically grown grains, legumes, nuts and berries.
Vitamin D: Required for mineral absorption and strongly protective against breast and color cancer. Found only in animal foods such as cod liver oil, lard, shellfish and butterfat, organ meats and egg yolks from grass-fed animals.
Vitamin E: Works as an antioxidant at the cellular level. Found in unprocessed oils as well as animal fats like butter and egg yolks.
Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA): Strongly protective against breast cancer. Found in the butterfat and meat fat of grass-fed ruminant animals.
Cholesterol: A potent antioxidant that protects against free radicals in cell membranes. Found only in animal fats.
Minerals: The body needs generous amounts of a wide variety of minerals for protection against cancer. Minerals like zinc, magnesium, and selenium are vital components of enzymes that help the body fight carcinogens. Minerals are more easily absorbed from animal foods.
Lactic Acid and Friendly Bacteria: These contribute to the health of the digestive tract. Found in lacto-fermented foods.
Saturated Fats: Strengthen the immune system. Needed for proper use of the essential fatty acids. The lungs cannot function without saturated fats, found mostly in animal fats.
Long-Chain Fatty Acids: Arachidonic acid (AA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosa-hexaenoic acid (DHA) help fight cancer on the cellular level. They are found mostly in animal foods such as butter, organ meats, cod liver oil and seafood.
Short- and Medium-Chain Fatty Acids: These strengthen the immune system and faciliate intercellular communication. Plentiful in coconut oil; lesser amounts in butter.
Co-enyzme Q10: Highly protective against cancer and found only in animal foods.
So, as we close out Breast Cancer Awareness Month, think about opportunities to prevent cancer in the upcoming months.