Food helps us by supplying many vital micronutrients such as vitamins and minerals. Your genetic composition can make you susceptible to some types of cancer. Your way of eating plays a major role in increasing or reducing the risk of cancer.
Phytochemicals are non-nutritive substances found in plants. They protect us against diseases when they are in our body. Isoflavones and Lycopene are phytochemicals. Isoflavones decrease the risk of breast cancer for premenopausal women, while Lycopene decreases the prostate cancer risk in middle aged men.
Soya is a great source of Isoflavones like genisteinm and daidzein. Although isoflavones are weak estrogens, the established hypothesis has been that isoflavones exert antiestrogenic effects when placed in a high-estrogen environment (pre-menopausal women) and estrogenic effects when in a low-estrogen environment, (post-menopausal women).
Daidzein was found to inhibit the growth of cancer cells in many studies.
Genistein:
- Reduces the protective mechanisms of cancer cells.
- Acts as an antioxidant.
- Inhibits several enzymes in cellular signaling pathways.
- Increases levels of transforming growth factor-beta' that inhibits the growth of tumor cells.
- Inhibits the growth of wide range of both hormone-dependent and hormone-independent cancer cells.
Decreased rates of breast, uterus and prostate cancers are associated with Soya consumption because of its antiestrogenic action.
Lycopenes:
Tomatoes, watermelon and other orange-to-red colored vegetables and fruits like paprika, rose-hips etc. contain abundant lycopenes. A better level of Lycopene is produced from tomatoes when they cooked with olive or canola oil.
Lycopenes are natural carotenoids that act as antioxidants. They also block the conversion of food mutagens found in fried, cooked meats and fish in the form of heterocyclic amines.
Lycopenes are good inhibitors of cell proliferation and lower the oxidation of LDL-cholesterol thus minimizing the heart disease risk.
Lycopenes reduce the risk for stomach, breast, colon, lung and prostate cancer. Both raw and cooked tomatoes have same amount of cancer fighting power. Lycopenes stimulate the enzymes that block the carcinogenic damage to the cell.
