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| calendula, dandelion, and squash flowers, as well as in green leafy vegetables and egg yolks. |
| Carotenoids can protect phagocytes from auto-oxidative damage, enhance T- and B-lymphocyte proliferate responses, stimulate effector T-cell functions, enhancing their cytotoxic capabilities, and stimulate macrophage and natural killer-cell tumoricidal capacities, as well as increase the production of certain interleukins. Carotenoids protect the body, especially the lipids and organ walls in the cell, from oxidative damage. They also protect the skin from sun damage caused by sunlight reacting with fatty acids, which can result in oxidative damage to the body's DNA. |
| If you plan to add carotenoids to your diet in supplement form (see chapter 5), it is very important to take a full-spectrum natural carotenoid supplement, not simply synthetic beta-carotene. Carotenoids, whether in vegetables or in supplements, are best assimilated if taken with a fat such as flaxseed oil or olive oil. |
| Cruciferous Vegetables |
| Eat cruciferous vegetables daily, or eat at least five servings per week. Cabbage, broccoli, brussels sprouts, cauliflower, kale, collards, turnips, and radishes are among the most common. It is best not to eat them raw, because in their raw form they contain high amounts of goitrogens, thyroid suppressing agents that are removed during the cooking process. Since many people with cancer have slightly underactive thyroids, it's a good idea to avoid goitrogens when possible. |
| In addition to having special anticancer compounds called indoles and isothiocyanates, cruciferous vegetables are also high in vitamins A, C, and E; some contain anticancer minerals, and most are high in fiber. In experiments, indoles were added to the diets of mice before and during the administration of carcinogens (like those in cigarettes); the indoles stopped the growth of tumors developing in the stomach and lungs. 7 In some way not yet clear, indoles deactivate carcinogens or block them from damaging cells, acting at several different stages of carcinogenesis to stop both cancer promoters and initiators. It may be that indoles buttress the enzyme systems responsible for metabolizing carcinogens, and, in all probability, they increase the antioxidant |
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