Nutritional Therapy - Natural Way To Prevent Cancer

Yes, cancer can be prevented in natural ways, even cure it.

It was only recently that international health experts reported that cancer will overtake heart disease as the world's top killer by 2010.

This report maybe disturbing, but realistically, cancer is talked about more frequently each day. It can truly devastate a whole family once a member learned that he or she have cancer. It takes a lot to battle cancer. In fact, hearing words like surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy can make a person feel worse.

Doctors and other health experts are one in saying that many types of cancers can be cured if found early enough. This was proven many times, past and present, and many cancer survivors have testified to this. But for people who does not want to use the normal but yet toxic methods to battle the illness and prevent cancer, there is such a method called nutritional therapy. As you know, eating a healthy diet can be the difference between a healthy and non-healthy person. But, aside from keeping your body healthy, there are some foods that are known to prevent and cure certain types of cancer. Here are some of them.

Green tea contains catechins, which can help retard tumor growth. It is also a powerful antioxidant that helps hasten the death of cancer cells. Green tea should be steed for at least five to eight minutes to release the catechins. Drink two cups of green tea a day and drink within two hours of preparation. Choose the non-caffeinated variety to lessen any side effects like heart palpitation.

Turmeric and yellow curry are potent food ingredients to fight inflammation. In the laboratory, these substances enhance the effect of chemotherapy and also reduce tumor growth.

Cabbages (like bok choy, broccoli, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts) contain sulforaphane and indole-3-carbinols, which are potent anti-cancer substances. These molecules can prevent precancerous cells from turning into real cancer cells. To prepare cabbage, steam briefly or stir-fry quickly with a little olive oil. Don’t boil them or you’ll destroy their anti-cancer properties.

Ginger root has long been used in Asia to treat nausea, vomiting, cough, colds, headache, stomach ache and arthritis. Its pungent odor comes from gingerols or shogaols, which are likely responsible for its anti-nausea and anti-vomiting effects. Aside from these benefits, ginger also helps reduce inflammation and helps retard the creation of new blood vessels used by cancer cells.

Garlic, Onions and Leeks. When tested in the laboratory, garlic and leeks were the top inhibitors of cancer cells. Garlic and leeks contain ally sulfides which promote cell death in colon, breast, lung and prostate cancer, as well as leukemia. To best release its anti-cancer ingredients, the garlic clove should be crushed and gently fried with a little oil. Garlic can also be eaten raw, and added to salads.

Shitake mushrooms and other mushrooms contain polysaccharides and lentinian, which increase the activity of our immune cells. These protective cells kill off any cancer cell that wants to replicate and invade the body’s organs. The stronger your immune system, the lesser your chance of getting sick. In Japan, cancer patients are encouraged to eat mushrooms to complement the effects of chemotherapy.

Carotenoid-rich vegetables and fruits. Yellow-orange colored fruits and vegetables contain Vitamin A and lycopene, which may prevent cancer. These healthy foods include carrots, sweet potatoes, squash and tomatoes. In a six-year study on breast cancer patients, researchers found that those patients who ate more foods rich in carotenoids lived longer compared to those who ate less.

The Omega-3s in oily fishes (like sardines, salmon and mackerel) help reduce inflammation and may retard cancer cell growth. Omega-3s also reduce the spread of cancer. Some studies show that more fish you consume, the lesser are your chances of getting some types of cancer.

A study shows that eating tomato and tomato sauce (rich in lycopene) leads to longer life for men with prostate cancer. In order to release its lycopene, tomatoes should be cooked with a little olive oil. Ideally, we should consume at least 10 tablespoons of tomato sauce a week or approximately 150ml a week. So remember, red spaghetti sauce is very healthy, just skip the meatballs.

Probiotics and yogurt. Our intestines contain good bacteria, called lactobacillus, to help digestion and bowel movement. Probiotics, like yogurt, help increase these friendly bacteria and help inhibit the growth of colon cancer cells.

Soy-products, like tofu and miso soup, contain genistein, a substance that blocks the stimulation of cancer cells by the body’s estrogen and testosterone hormones. In a study of Asian women, those who consumed more soy since their teen years had fewer incidence of breath cancer. Instead of drinking regular milk, you can try soy milk. You may take tofu and vegemeat as an alternative source of protein to reduce your meat intake.

Strawberries, blueberries and cranberries contain ellagic acid and polyphenols. These substances help eliminate cancer substances in the body. Fresh berries are ideal but frozen berries have also similar beneficial effects.

If you wish to acquire the most benefits from these superfoods, you should try adding more of them to your diet. Likewise, you should also lessen your consumption of “unhealthy” and possibley cancer-causing foods, especially the traditional Western fast-food diet of hamburgers, hotdogs, preserved meat and steaks.

Apart from taking these anticancer foods, what is equally important is that you have an anticancer mindset. Health studies reveal that one’s state of mind has an effect on whether we develop cancer or not. Meaning, people are more inclined to develop illness, or cancer to this effect, if they always feel helpless, hopeless, desperate and persistent anger, especially hidden negative emotions.

But to have positive emotions like acceptance, openness, support from family and friends, along with meditation, yoga and prayer, it can activate one’s immune system and helps the body fight off the cancer cells and even cure the dreaded cancer itself.

Soy-products, like tofu and miso soup, contain genistein, a substance that blocks the stimulation of cancer cells by the body’s estrogen and testosterone hormones. In a study of Asian women, those who consumed more soy since their teen years had fewer incidence of breath cancer. Instead of drinking regular milk, you can try soy milk. You may take tofu and vegemeat as an alternative source of protein to reduce your meat intake.

Strawberries, blueberries and cranberries contain ellagic acid and polyphenols. These substances help eliminate cancer substances in the body. Fresh berries are ideal but frozen berries have also similar beneficial effects.

If you wish to acquire the most benefits from these superfoods, you should try adding more of them to your diet. Likewise, you should also lessen your consumption of “unhealthy” and possibley cancer-causing foods, especially the traditional Western fast-food diet of hamburgers, hotdogs, preserved meat and steaks.

Apart from taking these anticancer foods, what is equally important is that you have an anticancer mindset. Health studies reveal that one’s state of mind has an effect on whether we develop cancer or not. Meaning, people are more inclined to develop illness, or cancer to this effect, if they always feel helpless, hopeless, desperate and persistent anger, especially hidden negative emotions.

But to have positive emotions like acceptance, openness, support from family and friends, along with prayer, MEDITATION and YOGA, it can activate one’s immune system and helps the body fight off the cancer cells and even cure the dreaded cancer itself.

Is Memorizing Your Memory a Cure to Alzheimer?

A cure to Alzheimer?

Experts say that not all memory loss leads to Alzheimer. “Generally, people who worry about getting Alzheimer’s do not have the illness.”

As we get older and near middle age, usually our memory capabilities tend to become a bit dull. It starts from forgetting little things like the time slot of our favorite TV show, to important matters, like our phone or social security number. Although this can be extremely annoying for us, it is still perfectly normal and there are still some remedies for this problem.

However, for some, this is a very serious and frustrating matter, especially if it gets in the way of their work. Some people may have even become paranoid, thinking they have just been afflicted with Alzheimer’s disease.

Fear not. To help your memory get back on track, here are a few tips you can try:

• Revisit the things you need to remember. For example, to memorize a telephone number, keep repeating it to yourself. Take a break and try it again.

• Fish and nuts are excellent brain foods. It is a great idea to study after eating these foods. Also take vitamin supplements every morning and stock up on energy drinks to give your brain and your whole body more staying power.

• Say the things you want to remember aloud to yourself. For example, if you want to remember where your car keys are, say out loud: “I’m putting my car keys on top of the TV.”

• Play some puzzle games with a friend to help power up your brain. Try playing scrabble, hangman, bridge and take one some crossword puzzles on your favorite newspapers.

• Engage in more conversations. Be the one who starts the talking and try to talk to a diverse group of people as much as possible. This will help you use your memory much better. Also, spend more time with your kids. Tell them what you used to do when you were their age and / or your favorite bedtime stories. And make a habit of telling your spouse the happenings of your busy day. This will also help you get closer with your loved ones.

• Link new information to known facts. For example, while you are in your garden, you can state that a new flower which has bloomed is darker than the one in your front yard.

• Use mnemonics when studying for an examination. They have been proven effective for a long time now. Also, don’t just memorize the lesson. Understand it fully. Over-memorizing something will only give you a harsh and painful headache.

• Keep a personal journal or diary and jot down everything you’ve done during the day. This will help you remember all the important and daily tasks and chores that you do.

• Get enough sleep. When you arrive home early from work or school, take a short nap (about an hour). This will refresh your brain and make it ready to accept new information while retaining everything else.

• If you’re trying to remember something from your past, like your childhood memories, try associating them with figures / objects which were prominent during that era, such as, actors, movies, songs, TV shows, etc.

• If you have the time, feel free to visit your basement / attic or wherever your old stuff is stashed in. Inspect your old toys, clothes, memorabilia, etc and take time to reminisce about the ’good old days’. You should also watch old family movies or audio cassettes. Have them transferred to a CD in order to make them easier to understand.

• Of course, practice makes perfect. If you’re trying to store a new lesson, recipe, skill or task into your memory, keep doing until you’ve mastered it and it becomes second nature.

• If you are into art, visit museums once in a while. The paintings, sculptures and classical music may remind you of persons or events in your life.

• Stress releases high level of gluocorticoids, which inhibit memory. So rest and relax once in a while. Meditation works extremely well. Do it for 15-30 minutes a day.

5 Foods that Cannot Help You to Sleep

Sleep Inducing Foods - Common Mistakes

"Getting enough sleep seems to be a challenge nowadays"

With the onset of cable TV, internet and video games nowadays, staying up late every night is quite easy while getting enough sleep seems to be a challenge. Even for grown ups, falling asleep become harder because of too much work, caring for the family, all the stuff that needs to be done around the house ... and so on.

People resort to many sleep inducing ways just to have the rest their bodies are longing. Unfortunately, these unproven methods seems to cause more problems than benefits that people are looking for. And some of these mistakes come from our food intakes. Let us see these 5 foods that cannot help you to sleep.

Common Mistakes

Warm Milk – Drinking warm milk at bedtime maybe comforting, however, it does not increase the promotion of sleep in contrast to a known folk remedy. Research had shown that when trytophan, an amino acid in milk known to have sleep-inducing effects, produces a serenity –boosting neurotransmitter called serotonin when released into the brain. But when milk was tested, it failed to affect sleep patterns, perhaps because other amino acids in it competed with trytophan to get into the brain.

Herbal Tea - Known for their sleep-promoting qualities, chamomile, lemon balm, hops and passionflower are used as “sleep formula” tea combinations. However, their effectiveness are not yet proven in clinical studies. Some experts say that these teas may work for some, and a warm liquid before bed may make you sleepy by generating body heat.

Caffeine - Most people thought coffee is a major source of caffeine (71 percent). However, there are other major sources of caffeine in our daily diet like soft drinks (16 percent), teas (12 percent) and even chocolate. Caffeine affects everyone differently, so if you’re sensitive it might be worth trying to cut down—or limit caffeine to the morning only. Our ability to eliminate caffeine in our body system decreases as we grow older. If we use to tolerate 4 cups of coffee daily when we were 20, we may need to limit or cut down with our coffee intake as we grow older.

Alcohol - Taking a glass of wine may help you fall asleep. Bu excessive use of alcohol cause a reverse effect and can make you wake up in the night. One theory is that alcohol suppresses the REM (rapid eye movement) sleep state that’s critical to a good night’s sleep. So, it is better that we drink moderately, if at all; avoid drinking within a few hours before going to sleep.

Sleep Supplements - A lot has been said regarding sleep formulas. According to a survey conducted a few years back, about 1.6 million people tried complementary or alternative therapies like these. Over half of them reported to have positive improvements with their insomnia problems. However, those glowing anecdotes haven’t been backed up by rigorous scientific study; and evaluations of most nutritional supplements have not shown any effects whatsoever. One word of advice, do not waste your money on sleep supplements until a rigorous scientific study has been made.

Do You know?

Dinners Rich in Carbohydrates – It is hard to sleep when you are hungry. But taking a light bedtime snack especially carbohydrates that are easily digested can help. Study shows a person tend to sleep faster at bedtime after eating dinner rich in carbohydrates of vegetables and tomato juice over high GI jasmine rice. It was speculated that meals with high-GI meals trigger greater amounts of insulin, which increased the ratio of tryptophan relative to other amino acids in the blood, allowing proportionately more to get into the brain and make people drowsy. You can try this one.