Can Food Cure Cancer?

by Katherine Gustafson · 2010-02-18 06:00:00 UTC
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Last week at the Technology, Entertainment and Design (TED) 2010 conference, cancer researcher William Li of the Angiogenesis Foundation declared that there is a "medical revolution happening all around us." He studies how certain foods inhibit the body's creation of new blood vessels, the proliferation of which contribute to the growth of cancers.

Angiogenesis, as the growth of blood vessels is called, is at the center of cutting-edge cancer research, since clusters of cancer cells can only develop into life-threatening conditions if fed with an abundant blood supply. Cutting off the growth of these new vessels is a sure-fire way to starve an emerging cancer.

Food turns out to be a key to this process. Li said that "Many foods are rich with Angiogenesis inhibitors, including: red grapes, soy beans, nutmeg, pumpkin, kale, blueberries and garlic. What we eat is our chemotherapy three times a day."

Does this mean we should all start new "angiogenesis diets" to ward off cancer? Actually, it's a lot easier than it sounds: Studying a list of some of the beneficial foods reveals that fruits and vegetables — the more colorful the better — are the key to inhibiting blood-vessel growth. One more reason to pack your meal plan with what we already know is good for you.

Photo: aussiegall via Flickr

Katherine Gustafson is a freelance writer and editor with a background in international nonprofit organizations.
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