The study asked the people with cancer, plus the healthy group - all aged between 25 and 74 - about diet, lifestyle and their consumption of both green and black teas.

Both kinds of tea are rich in antioxidants which animal studies have been shown prevent the development of cancer cells.

This research found that people who drank tea regularly had a lower risk of either cancer.

Those who drank two or more cups a day had a 65% lower risk of developing squamous cell carcinoma.

Tea-drinking also appeared to protect against basal cell carcinoma, but to a lesser degree.

Labels: Cancer, Tea

Eating mandarins may cut the risk of developing liver cancer and other diseases, research suggests.

Japanese scientists found the key were vitamin A compounds called carotenoids which give the fruit its orange colour.

One study found eating mandarins cut the risk of liver disease, hardened arteries and insulin resistance.

And a second found drinking the fruit's juice cut the risk of patients with chronic viral hepatitis developing liver cancer.

Labels: Cancer

Drinking a daily eight ounce glass of pomegranate juice can significantly slow the progress of prostate cancer, a study suggests.

Researchers say the effect may be so large that it may help older men outlive the disease.

Pomegranates contain a cocktail of chemicals which minimise cell damage, and potentially kill off cancer cells.

Labels: Cancer

Apricot stones sold for health benefits could be fatal in high doses, the food safety watchdog has warned.

Apricot kernels are thought to contain high levels of vitamin B17, which is described as an immune system booster and even sold as a cancer treatment.

But the Food Standards Agency said they also produce cyanide and can be poisonous in high doses.

Labels: Cancer

Many of the world's 25 biggest food firms only pay lip service to their duty to help fight the global diet crisis, a report on the issue says.

It found that the response of most companies to World Health Organisation guidelines on fighting obesity, cancer and heart disease was "lukewarm".

Most firms appeared not to care "a jot", the report by London's City University suggested.

A spokesman said the UK food industry took its responsibilities seriously.

Labels: Cancer

Patrick Holford- DON'T BE FOOLED BY THE OMEGA 3 SCAM

The headlines in the newspapers read 'Experts cast doubts on Omega 3' BBC.. 'The benefits of fish and linseed oils as elixir of life are another health myth' the Times… 'The Benefits of Omega 3 Seem Fishy' CBS News.

This is due to a 'systematic review' of studies on omega 3 and it's effects on cardiovascular disease, cancer and mortality, published on Friday in the British Medical Journal. This is not a new study, but a study of studies. The authors conclude that 'omega 3 fats don't have a clear effect on total mortality, combined cardiovascular events or cancer.'

It's my job to read and analyse the whole paper and it soon becomes clear there is something very fishy going on. The main analysis is on 15 'randomised controlled studies'. Of these studies nine show benefit of omega 3, five show no big difference, and one is shown as negative. So nine for omega 3, one against. The author of the 'negative' study, Dr Bemelmans from the University of Groningen in the Netherlands questions how his study could be used to turn this review paper from positive to negative. For good reason. If you read the abstract of this paper (which you'll find on-line by typing in Bemelmans + margarin) the first thing you'll find is that this isn't a study on fish or fish oils, it's a study on margarine! The authors gave their subjects a margarine containing alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) – that's the omega 3 found in flax – or linoleic acid (omega 6) and found 'no significant difference existed in the 10 year estimated heart disease risk.'

Combs Spouts Off- They call this science?

In the past few months, several studies have been widely reported that supposedly discredited some widely-used nutritional supplement or alternative treatment. The fine folks at the Life Extension Foundation (LEF) have had enough of the shoddy studies, misleading press releases, and terrible reporting, and they're preparing a full-fledged response. A preliminary article is available on their website now:

Over the past several months, the media has questioned the efficacy of several popular dietary supplements. In the upcoming June 2006 issue of Life Extension magazine, we dissect these negative media reports down to the bone to reveal the hard scientific facts.

In doing so, we expose the absurdity of the headline-hungry media making proclamations such as “another natural remedy bit the dust” when describing the recent glucosamine study. We also reveal the inappropriateness of conventional doctors, with little knowledge about the proper use of nutrients, but with strong financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry, conducting studies that contain so many flaws that their findings are largely irrelevant.

As usual for LEF, this article is footnoted to a fare-thee-well -- 181 references, most to studies published in peer-reviewed medical and scientific journals. If you print the article, it runs about 6 pages, depending on margin settings, etc. The references add about 6 more pages. The article provides brief preliminary critiques -- scathing ones -- of studies claiming that:

* Eating a low-fat diet doesn't reduce women's risk of heart attacks, strokes, breast cancer, or colon cancer.

* Calcium and vitamin D don't protect women's bones.

* Glucosamine and chondroitin aren't effective for osteoarthritis of the knee.

* Saw palmetto is ineffective in treating prostate enlargement.

Each of those four claims is easily shown to be false. In fact, a couple of them are even contradicted by the studies, which were mischaracterized in press releases and media reports.

Labels: Cancer, Fish, Omega

I'm producing a series of short spots for the Food Network called "The Power of Food". They're basically little 60-second mini-documentaries that tell the story of real people whose lives were changed by food. They can be funny, touching, or both. For instance:

* How being part of cooperative garden in the middle of the inner city changed a kid's perspective on his future
* Someone trying to track down a certain ingredient met a future spouse in the one store they found the ingredient in.
* A woman quit her job to go home and take care of her cancer-stricken mother. She started researching nutritional treatments and ended up starting an organic farm business.

I'm pretty much looking for anything with a strong, tangible hook, where food has really affected someone's life. They need to be more than just "I love food, therefore I became a chef or opened a bakery" (even though that's a great thing). They can be located anywhere within the U.S. If the story is chosen by the network, we'd go out and film the person telling their story, as well as any relevant things and places, i.e that person in the garden or kitchen, old photographs, etc. People MUST submit their stories through the website, but if they have any questions, they can email me at foodshorts-power@yahoo.com.

Labels: Cancer

There is no evidence of a clear benefit to health from fats which are commonly found in oily fish, researchers say.

Consumption of omega-3 fatty acids is thought to protect against heart disease and UK guidelines advise eating four portions of oily fish a week.

But the British Medical Journal review of 89 earlier studies looking at heart disease, cancer or strokes found no evidence the fats offered protection.

Labels: Cancer, Fish, Omega

A diet rich in a fat found in oily fish may protect men with prostate cancer from developing a more aggressive form of the disease, scientists have found.

Prostate cancer is much more likely to be life-threatening if tumour cells migrate and invade other tissues, such as the bone marrow.

Lab tests found omega-3 oil - present in fish like salmon - prevented this.

Labels: Cancer, Fish, Omega

A chemical in vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage can boost DNA repair in cells and may stop them becoming cancerous, a study says.

Another chemical in soy also performs the same role, the Georgetown University team said.

Although a link has already been found between eating these foods and a reduced cancer risk, this research shows how that might happen.

Labels: Cancer

Eating large quantities of red meat can increase your risk of bowel cancer by producing substances in the gut that damage DNA, a study reveals today.

A comparison of cells from the lining of the colon shows that people who eat a diet high in high red meat have a "significant" increase in levels of DNA damage compared with vegetarians. This damage can increase the risk of developing cancer, say researchers at the Medical Research Council's (MRC) Dunn human nutrition unit in Cambridge.

Labels: Cancer

Omega-3 fatty acids probably do not help prevent any type of cancer, according to a review that evaluated every cited study looking into the question.

"Taking dietary supplements or regularly consuming fish doesn't appear to reduce the risk of developing cancer," says Catherine MacLean, of RAND Health in Santa Monica, California, US, who led the study.

Omega-3 fatty acids are a type of polyunsaturated fat, one of four types of fat the body derives from food. Omega-3 comes in three forms - EPA, DHA and ALA - and they appear to do different things. EPA and DHA come from foods like salmon, fresh tuna and a few plants - or from supplements - and have been most associated with health benefits. ALA, on the other hand, which you can get from flax, walnuts, and enriched soy milks, has to be converted into one of the other two within the body to be beneficial.

Labels: Cancer, Fish, Omega

Magnet therapies which are claimed to cure conditions ranging from back pain to cancer have no proven benefits, according to a team of US researchers.

Sales of the so-called therapeutic devices, which are worn in bracelets, insoles, and wrist and knee bands, top $1 billion worldwide, they said.

But a major review showed no benefits, a British Medical Journal report said.

The team also warned self-treatment with magnets risked leaving underlying medical conditions untreated.

Labels: Cancer

A green tea extract may help patients with a form of leukaemia, a study says.

The tea, discovered in China nearly 5,000 years ago, has long been thought to have health benefits.

But the team from the Mayo Clinic in the US found it appeared to improve the condition of four patients with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL).

Labels: Cancer

Mr Williams highlighted new concerns about the additive's safety, raised by a recent Italian study that linked it to cancer in rats. He said the history of aspartame's licensing put "regulators and politicians to shame", with the likes of Donald Rumsfeld, the US defence secretary and former head of Searle, the company that discovered the sweetener, "calling in his markers" to get it approved.

Responding for the government, the public health minister, Caroline Flint, said a thorough independent review of safety data had been conducted as recently as 2001 and the Food Standards Agency advice remained the same: aspartame is safe for use in food. She said the government took food safety very seriously.

Labels: Cancer

The risk of developing ovarian cancer can be reduced by drinking tea, a team of Swedish researchers says.

Karolinska Institute researchers found drinking at least two cups a day cut the risk by nearly 50%. Antioxidants in tea are thought to be the reason.

The team quizzed over 60,000 women, 301 of whom developed ovarian cancer.

The Archives of Internal Medicine study said more research was needed, and UK experts added there was still no proof of the benefits.

Labels: Cancer

Scientists are developing a "super-broccoli" which they hope will help people ward off cancer.

Broccoli has anti-cancer properties but an Institute of Food Research study has found some people's genetic make-up may minimise the protection they get.

IFR scientists say creating broccoli containing more of the key chemical - sulforaphane - may counter this effect.

They hope it will be ready in three years but recommend eating lots of different green vegetables until then.

Labels: Cancer

A compound found only in hops and the main product they are used in - beer - has rapidly gained interest as a micronutrient that might help prevent many types of cancer.

Researchers at Oregon State University first discovered the cancer-related properties of this flavonoid compound called xanthohumol about 10 years ago. A recent publication by an OSU researcher in the journal Phytochemistry outlines the range of findings made since then. And many other scientists in programs around the world are also beginning to look at the value of these hops flavonoids for everything from preventing prostate or colon cancer to hormone replacement therapy for women.

....

It's possible, scientists say, that hops might be produced or genetically engineered to have higher levels of xanthohumol, specifically to take advantage of its anti-cancer properties. Some beers already have higher levels of these compounds than others. The lager and pilsner beers commonly sold in domestic U.S. brews have fairly low levels of these compounds, but some porter, stout and ale brews have much higher levels.

Labels: Cancer

Scientists have pinpointed how evening primrose oil fights breast tumours.

It is down to a substance in the oil called gamma-linolenic acid that acts on the same receptor in tumours as the powerful breast cancer drug Herceptin.

Unlike Herceptin, which blocks the Her-2/neu receptor, GLA interferes with the gene carrying the DNA code needed to make the receptor work.

Labels: Cancer

Eating vegetables from the cabbage family can reduce the risk of lung cancer for people with a certain genetic make-up, scientists say.

Such cruciferous vegetables had already been linked to reduced rates of lung cancer, but it had not been clear why.

The study found eating the vegetables at least once a week cut cancer risk for people with inactive versions of two genes, carried by 70% of people.

Labels: Cancer