The Skinny Kid

Black Raspberries May Help Prevent Esophageal Cancer

Black raspberries are highly effective in preventing the development of cancerous tumors, according to a study published in the October issue of Acta Pharmacologica Sinica published by Wiley-Blackwell.The black raspberries will, however, have no therapeutic value if the tumors have already developed.

Now, dip them in dark chocolate and serve them with a deep red wine and you may have the healthiest dessert ever.

SaukValley.com - Serving Dixon, Sterling & Rock Falls

It’s a pretty good bet that if you ate three pomegranates a day, you’d lose weight and live longer.For one thing, given how finicky and labor-intensive it is to eat a pomegranate, you wouldn’t have much time left to eat other foods.

Then there’s the growing body of research suggesting that the polyphenolic antioxidants found in pomegranates (and in red grapes, blueberries, cranberries) have beneficial health effects that include improving cardiac health and reducing the risk of cancer.

I’ve talked about some of those benefits before, and frequently drink pomegranate juice myself. But the article points out that the juice may not offer the same benefits in terms of weight control.

Check the nutrition labels, and you’ll see why. These are sugar bombs of the first order.

An 8-ounce serving of Pom? Thirty-four grams of sugar. Whole Foods’ 365 Everyday Value: 40 grams. Frutzzo: 32 grams.

By comparison, an 8-ounce serving of Coca-Cola contains 27 grams of sugar; 8 ounces of Mountain Dew, 31 grams.

More sugar than soda? Wow. I guess all that sugar is in the fruit as well, but as the article points out it is a little harder to get at. Another one of those cases where slowing down the pace of eating can have benefits of its own.

ScienceDaily: Broccoli and Other Vegetables Linked with Decreased Risk of Aggressive Prostate Cancer

Eating more cruciferous vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower is associated with a reduced risk of aggressive prostate cancer.

Good reason # 473

news @ nature.com - Cancer-proof mice live longer - An extra copy of a tumour-killing gene helps mice to stay young.

Who would’ve guessed?

ScienceDaily: Boiling Broccoli Ruins Its Anti-cancer Properties, According To Study

Researchers at the University of Warwick have found that the standard British cooking habit of boiling vegetables severely damages the anticancer properties of many Brassica vegetables such as broccoli, Brussel sprouts, cauliflower and green cabbage.
Past studies have shown that consumption of Brassica vegetables decreases the risk of cancer. This is because of the high concentration in Brassicas of substances known as glucosinolates which are metabolized to cancer preventive substances known as isothiocyanates. However before this research it was not known how the glucosinolates and isothiocyanates were influenced by storage and cooking of Brassica vegetables.

The researchers, Prof Paul Thornalley from Warwick Medical School at the University of Warwick and Dr Lijiang Song from the University of Warwick’s Department of Chemistry bought Brassica vegetables, (broccoli, Brussel sprouts, cauliflower and green cabbage) from a local store and transported them to the laboratory within 30 minutes of purchasing. The effect of cooking on the glucosinolate content of vegetables was then studied by investigating the effects of cooking by boiling, steaming, microwave cooking and stir-fry.

Boiling appeared to have a serious impact on the retention of those important glucosinolate within the vegetables. The loss of total glucosinolate content after boiling for 30 minutes was: broccoli 77%, Brussel sprouts 58%, cauliflower 75% and green cabbage 65%.

The effects of other cooking methods were investigated: steaming for 0–20 min, microwave cooking for 0–3 min and stir-fry cooking for 0–5 min. All three methods gave no significant loss of total glucosinolate analyte contents over these cooking periods.

I prefer the taste of the other methods to boiling as well. Perhaps those glucosinates are what tastes so good.

ScienceDaily: Pomegranate Juice May Help Fight Lung Cancer

Researchers are adding to the list of cancer types for which pomegranates seem to halt growth. A recent study at the University of Wisconsin–Madison using a mouse model shows that consuming pomegranates could potentially help reduce the growth and spread of lung cancer cells or even prevent lung cancer from developing.

The list is already pretty long.

Nobody wants to undergo chemotherapy if they don’t need to. But for those who must, the advice to eat more vegetables and take your vitamins is just as important as ever.

Antioxidants May Aid Chemotherapy Patients

There is no evidence that antioxidant supplements interfere with the therapeutic effects of chemotherapy agents, according to a recent systematic review of the use of antioxidants during chemotherapy, available in the May, 2007 issue of the peer-reviewed journal Cancer Treatment Reviews. In fact, they may help increase survival rates, tumor response, and the patient’s ability to tolerate treatment.

Yet another reason.

No, that isn’t what I was thinking (though it isn’t a bad idea either.)

ScienceDaily: Black Raspberries Yield Possible Skin Cancer Treatment

Researchers at the Ohio State University Medical Center say a topical compound made of black raspberries significantly slows the growth of squamous cell carcinomas of the skin in mice exposed to ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation, the most dangerous light in the solar spectrum.

That’s what I originally had in mind.

No, that isn’t what I was thinking (though it isn’t a bad idea either.)

ScienceDaily: Black Raspberries Yield Possible Skin Cancer Treatment

Researchers at the Ohio State University Medical Center say a topical compound made of black raspberries significantly slows the growth of squamous cell carcinomas of the skin in mice exposed to ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation, the most dangerous light in the solar spectrum.

That’s what I originally had in mind.

Dairy, Fruits And Veggies May Help Smokers Quit

Smokers reported that consuming milk, water, fruits and vegetables worsened the taste of cigarettes, while consuming alcohol, coffee and meat enhanced their taste, according to the scientists.The findings could lead to a “Quit Smoking Diet” or to development of a gum or lozenge that makes cigarettes less palatable, said lead study investigator Joseph McClernon, Ph.D., an assistant research professor of medical psychiatry at the Duke Center for Nicotine and Smoking Cessation Research.

“With a few modifications to their diet — consuming items that make cigarettes taste bad, such as a cold glass of milk, and avoiding items that make cigarettes taste good, like a pint of beer — smokers can make quitting a bit easier,” McClernon said.

No wonder smoking and bars go hand-in-hand. Problem for smokers is, it is so much easier to eat the things that contribute to smoking than those that help you quit.