Good to remember

Throughout this whole 6 years, I have become interested in why a person now has almost a 50/50 chance of having cancer at some point of their lifetime, whereas about a hundred years ago it was about a 5% chance, and why certain populations even today barely know cancer, but are equally prone to cancer if moving to UK or other westernised countries.

Much of the answer is with the western diet. Food manufacturers have a lot of the responsibility. So what does good look like?

  

There is evidence that plant-based foods may be effective at preventing specific cancers. For example:

• Diets high in fruit may lower the risk of stomach and lung cancer. 
• Eating vegetables containing carotenoids, such as carrots, Brussels sprouts, and squash, may reduce the risk of lung, mouth, pharynx, and larynx cancers.
• Diets high in non-starchy vegetables, such as broccoli, spinach, and beans, may help protect against stomach and esophageal cancer. 
• Eating oranges, berries, peas, bell peppers, dark leafy greens and other foods high in vitamin C may also protect against esophageal cancer.
• Foods high in lycopene, such as tomatoes, guava, and watermelon, may lower the risk of prostate cancer. 

The less processed these plant-based foods are—the less they’ve been cooked, peeled, mixed with other ingredients, stripped of their nutrients, or otherwise altered from the way they came out of the ground—the better.

Which probably surprises no one. But it's good to remember.