Each year in Australia, almost 3,300 men die of prostate cancer! This is equal to the number of women who die from breast cancer annually. It is also just as important to know that around 20,000 new cases are diagnosed in Australia every year. To put that into perspective. 1 in 9 men in Australia develop prostate cancer in their lifetime.
Treatment options for prostate cancer are more effective than ever before. Yet, for many men, the diagnosis and treatment of cancer brings to their attention the need to change their diet and exercise behaviours. For other men, having a friend diagnosed with prostate cancer or simply the fear of increasing the risk of prostate cancer can be enough to start making positive changes.
It is clear that a healthy diet and regular exercise can be an important step toward preventing other diseases that commonly occur with aging, including heart disease and diabetes and exciting new data suggest that this same approach may also slow prostate cancer growth.
Our society is characterized by a lifestyle with low levels of exercise coupled with over consumption of foods that are high in calories, fat, sugar, and salt. Leading to a build up of extra fat. This excess fat, especially the fat around the middle of your body, has been associated with an increased risk of many diseases, including prostate cancer, and particularly aggressive prostate cancer.
Only recently have scientists discovered that Body fat is actually an organ with functions. It secretes hormones and specialized proteins that can increase inflammation and oxidation in the cells of your body (Two natural processes that are strong contributors to the development and progression of prostate cancer).
One of the most common causes of the loss of protective antioxidants is inflammation. In fact, investigators have noted the presence of inflammatory cells in virtually all prostate cancer tissue that is removed surgically, and have found that inflammation leads to the atrophy, or wasting away, of normal prostate tissue adjacent to precancerous and cancerous areas of prostate tissue.
How do we battle this? Based on these and other observations, evidence is mounting that inflammation and oxidation play key roles in the development of prostate cancer.
Why is this important?
Because although other contributory factors such as aging and altered hormone secretions are difficult or impossible to change, nutritional and exercise habits that reduce the development of inflammation and oxidation can be changed! Following the tips below will help to minimise the risk and effect of prostate cancer as well as maintaining good healthy and energy.
Start Fresh!
There are many anti-inflammatory and antioxidant substances found in colourful fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and spices. By focusing your diet on fresh fruits and vegetables, fresh fish, and whole grains, you can increase the protective anti-inflammatory components of your diet and begin to benefit from their effects.
For example, tomato-based products such as soups, pasta, and juices can increase levels of the antioxidant lycopene in the prostate gland. Drinking beverages such as pomegranate juice and green and black tea can increase levels of antioxidant-containing polyphenols. The cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, bok choy, wasabi mustard, and horseradish all contain substances that may induce protective proteins in your liver.
What we do know is that the anti-oxidants found in high levels in particular foods are generally expressed by their colour. Each colour / anti-oxidant mix will have unique health improving qualities. Let’s look at these now.
The red group, including tomatoes, pink grapefruit, and watermelon, contain lycopene, one of the most well-studied antioxidants in the fight against prostate cancer. Population-based studies clearly demonstrates that increased blood levels of lycopene and increased intake of lycopene-containing foods were associated with a reduced risk of aggressive prostate cancer. Researchers are unsure of the role of lycopene in cancer prevention rather than once cancer is developed and more studies are needed to answer this question, however becuase the information we have at the moment, I’m placing my bet down and consuming more lycopene.
It is also clear that the benefits of lycopene are more readily available when absorbed from cooked tomato products and juices than from whole tomatoes. This is lucky as, more than 80% of the lycopene in the Western diet comes from cooked tomato-based products such as pasta sauce, tomato soup, tomato juice, and tomato sauce.
The red/purple group, including pomegranates, grapes, plums, and assorted berries, all contain anthocyanins. Different berries in this group however seem to have unique properties. For example, pomegranates have ellagitannins, which inhibit inflammation and may have benefits for heart health, cancer prevention, and dementia, while cranberries have proanthocyanidins, which target a bacteria common in urinary tract infections.
The full benefits of blackberries, strawberries, and raspberries are still being studied, but they all have antioxidant power and work together with the other red/purple berries.
The orange group, including apricots, mangoes, cantaloupes, carrots, pumpkin, and sweet potatoes, contain alpha and beta carotenes. Beta-carotene, is converted by the body into vitamin A, which is important for vision, and works together with the red, green, and yellow/green antioxidants. Note that carrots provide about half the alpha and beta carotene in the average Western diet.
The orange/yellow group, including oranges, peaches, papaya, and nectarines, contain betacryptoxanthin, with similar properties to other carotenoids. About 87% of cryptoxanthin comes from orange juice, oranges, and tangerines, but be careful, processed juices can lose some of the helpful nutrients during production and high amounts of sugars are often added.
The yellow/green group, including spinach, collard, yellow corn, green peas, avocado, and honeydew melon, contain lutein and zeaxanthin. These carotenoids also contribute to eye health. Lower intakes have been associated with cataracts and age-related macular degeneration, the primary preventable cause of blindness in America.
The green group, including broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, bok choy, and kale, contain sulforaphane, isothiocyanates, and indoles. These compounds stimulate genes in the liver to produce enzymes that break down carcinogens, including those that are produced when overcooking and/or charbroiling meats.
The white/green group, including garlic, onions, asparagus, leeks, shallots, and chives, contain allyl sulfides, which activate an antioxidant response in cells.
Buy it Fresh from the Farmer
It is important to note that foods with deeper, richer colours are typically more nutritious. To allow for long-distance transport, supermarkets often pick fruit and vegetables while it is still green and then ripen them rapidly just before sale with ethylene gas, a substance normally produced by the plant as a signal to ripen. While ripening, the family of lycopene compounds accumulates, especially in response to heat and light and more nutrition is drawn through the fruit stem. Because the ripening process is stilted, the colour of the typical store-bought tomato is often somewhat washed out and so too is the nutritional value. By contrast, the tomato that ripens naturally on the vine at the local farm is typically deeper in colour and richer in taste, and thus more nutritious. I buy my fruit and vegetables from my local growers market because of this very reason.
Work with your DNA!
It is now understood that your DNA is not set in stone. It is a living part of the cells in your body and its software code can be influenced by nutritional and environmental factors. In fact, it is estimated that only 30% of all processes normally associated with aging are dictated by genes, while 70% are under your personal control through diet, exercise, and other lifestyle behaviours.
Recent research shows that one of the most important nutritional factors modulating gene expression is folic acid: a lack of folic acid has been linked to an increased risk of heart disease and cancer. Folic acid, which is found in dark green leafy vegetables such as spinach and green lettuce, is a key factor in the pathway leading to the stabilization of DNA.
Get Moving!
Finally, recent research has suggested that regular exercise may be one of the best natural antioxidants. Regular exercise causes many changes in your body that help reduce circulating levels of reactive oxygen inflammation. Beyond burning calories, endurance type exercises, such as walking, running, cycling, and swimming, are particularly effective at increasing the body’s natural levels of antioxidants, eliminating inflammatory molecules that drive cancer. Exercise increases the levels of many antioxidants within the muscles themselves, thus reducing the levels of dangerous free radicals throughout your working muscles.
Summary
Focusing on a diet that is rich in antioxidants, low in proinflammatory and carcinogenic substances, and low in simple sugars (coupled with a regular exercise regimen) can make an important difference in improving the overall health of every prostate cancer thriver.
- Oxidation and inflammation play important roles in the development of prostate cancer
- Anti-inflammatory and antioxidant substances found in colourful fruits and vegetables can counteract the damage caused by oxidation and inflammation
- Increasing cruciferous vegetables can minimize intake of and damage from carcinogens
Working with an Accredited Practicing Dietitian will help you identify “Healthy” and “Unhealthy” foods, while working with a qualified exercise physiologist will help you develop an exercise regimen to keep you fit.
