Legumes play an important role in traditional diets in many parts of the world. They are low in fat, are good sources of protein and fiber, and contain a variety of micronutrients and phytoestrogens (plant estrogens). Phytoestrogens have received a lot of attention for their ability to fight not only cancer, but also heart disease and osteoporosis. They help balance hormones in the body and thus are thought to be particularly valuable for the hormone-dependent cancers: breast cancer and prostate cancer. It is well known that male hormones play a role in prostate cancer development.

Despite their advantages, legumes play a minor role in most Western diets. The typical Western based diet (lower in vegetables and legumes and higher in animal-based foods) can cause an increase in both male and female hormones (androgens and estrogens), while a plant-based diet tends to lower these hormones. This is the basis for the role of diet in the development of hormone-dependent cancers.

Soy foods, such as tofu, soy milk, soy beans, and vegetarian burgers, seem to be particularly rich in cancer-fighting properties. This is at least partially due to a form of phytoestrogen, called isoflavones, that is found primarily in soy. It appears to help prevent prostate cancer by binding to male hormone receptors in the prostate, thus reducing the stimulating effect of male hormones on prostate cell growth.

Epidemiological studies have shown that high levels of isoflavones are often associated with low rates of breast, colon, and prostate cancer. This has been used to explain why countries such as Japan and China that typically consume large amounts of soy have lower risks of these diseases.

The difficulty with consuming soy for reducing risk of prostate cancer is the lack of clinical trial evidence to support its use. As with any dietary component, it is difficult to isolate the effect of a particular food type to prove its effectiveness. One prospective study, including over 12,000 men, did evaluate consumption of soy milk. It found that those who drank soy milk regularly had a reduced risk of prostate cancer. The relationship held up after other factors were controlled for. Other studies need to be done to further establish the benefits of soy. In the meantime, getting more soy foods into your diet can be healthy for many reasons, and lowering your risk of prostate cancer may be one of these.

Vitamin D Deficiency: A Global Concern

If you live north of the line connecting San Francisco to Philadelphia and Athens to Beijing, odds are that you don’t get enough vitamin D. The same holds true if you don’t get outside for at least a 15-minute daily walk in the sun. African-Americans and others with dark skin, as well as older individuals, tend to have much lower levels of vitamin D, as do people who are overweight or obese.

Worldwide, an estimated 1 billion people have inadequate levels of vitamin D in their blood, and deficiencies can be found in all ethnicities and age groups. (1-3)  Indeed, in industrialized countries, doctors are even seeing the resurgence of rickets, the bone-weakening disease that had been largely eradicated through vitamin D fortification. (4-6)

Why are these widespread vitamin D deficiencies of such great concern? Because research conducted over the past decade suggests that vitamin D plays a much broader disease-fighting role than once thought.

Being “D-ficient” may increase the risk of a host of chronic diseases, such as osteoporosis, heart disease, some cancers, and multiple sclerosis, as well as infectious diseases, such as tuberculosis and even the seasonal flu.

Currently, there’s scientific debate about how much vitamin D people need each day. The Institute of Medicine, in a long-awaited report released on November 30, 2010 recommends tripling the daily vitamin D intake for children and adults in the U.S. and Canada, to 600 IU per day. (7) The report also recognized the safety of vitamin D by increasing the upper limit from 2,000 to 4,000 IU per day, and acknowledged that even at 4,000 IU per day, there was no good evidence of harm. The new guidelines, however, are overly conservative about the recommended intake, and they do not give enough weight to some of the latest science on vitamin D and health. For bone health and chronic disease prevention, many people are likely to need more vitamin D than even these new government guidelines recommend.

Vitamin D Sources and Function

Vitamin D is both a nutrient we eat and a hormone our bodies make. Few foods are naturally rich in vitamin D, so the biggest dietary sources of vitamin D are fortified foods and vitamin supplements. Good sources include dairy products and breakfast cereals (both of which are fortified with vitamin D), and fatty fish such as salmon and tuna.

The body also manufactures vitamin D from cholesterol, through a process triggered by the action of sunlight on skin, hence its nickname, “the sunshine vitamin.”  Yet some people do not make enough vitamin D from the sun, among them, people who have a darker skin tone, who are overweight, who are older, and who cover up when they are in the sun. (1)

Correctly applied sunscreen reduces our ability to absorb vitamin D by more than 90 percent. (8) And not all sunlight is created equal: The sun’s ultraviolet B (UVB) rays—the so-called “tanning” rays, and the rays that trigger the skin to produce vitamin D—are stronger near the equator and weaker at higher latitudes. So in the fall and winter, people who live at higher latitudes (in the northern U.S. and Europe, for example) can’t make much if any vitamin D from the sun. (8)

Vitamin D helps ensure that the body absorbs and retains calcium and phosphorus, both critical for building bone. Laboratory studies show that vitamin D can reduce cancer cell growth and plays a critical role in controlling infections. Many of the body’s organs and tissues have receptors for vitamin D, and scientists are still teasing out its other possible functions.

New Vitamin D Research: Beyond Building Bones

Several promising areas of vitamin D research look far beyond vitamin D’s role in building bones. And, as you might expect, the news media release a flurry of reports every time another study links vitamin D to some new ailment. These reports can be confusing, however, because some studies are stronger than others, and any report needs to be interpreted in the light of all other evidence. More answers may come from randomized trials, such as the VITamin D and OmegA-3 TriaL (VITAL), which will enroll 20,000 healthy men and women to see if taking 2,000 IU of vitamin D or 1,000 mg of fish oil daily lowers the risk of cancer, heart disease, and stroke.

Here, we provide an overview of some of the more promising areas of vitamin D research, highlighting the complex role of vitamin D in disease prevention—and the many unanswered questions that remain.

Vitamin D and Bone and Muscle Strength

Several studies link low vitamin D levels with an increased risk of fractures in older adults, and they suggest that vitamin D supplementation may prevent such fractures—as long as it is taken in a high enough dose. (9-13)

A summary of the evidence comes from a combined analysis of 12 fracture prevention trials that included more than 40,000 elderly people, most of them women. Researchers found that high intakes of vitamin D supplements—of about 800 IU per day—reduced hip and non-spine fractures by 20 percent, while lower intakes (400 IU or less) failed to offer any fracture prevention benefit. (13)

Vitamin D may also help increase muscle strength, which in turn helps to prevent falls, a common problem that leads to substantial disability and death in older people. (14-16)  Once again, vitamin D dose matters: A combined analysis of multiple studies found that taking 700 to 1,000 IU of vitamin D per day lowered the risk of falls by 19 percent, but taking 200 to 600 IU per day did not offer any such protection. (17)

A recent vitamin D trial drew headlines for its unexpected finding that a very high dose of vitamin D increased fracture and fall risk in older women. (18) The trial’s vitamin D dose—500,000 IU taken in a once-a-year pill—was much higher than previously tested in an annual regimen. After up to 5 years of treatment, women in the vitamin D group had a 15 percent higher fall risk and a 26 percent higher fracture risk than women who received the placebo.

It’s possible that giving the vitamin D in one large dose, rather than in several doses spread throughout the year, led to the increased risk. (18) The study authors note that only one other study—also a high-dose, once-a-year regimen—found vitamin D to increase fracture risk; no other studies have found vitamin D to increase the risk of falls. Furthermore, there’s strong evidence that more moderate doses of vitamin D taken daily or weekly protect against fractures and falls—and are safe.

So what is the significance of this study for people who want to take vitamin D supplements? A reasonable conclusion would be to continue taking moderate doses of vitamin D regularly, since these have a strong safety record, but to avoid extremely high single doses. This recent finding does present a challenge to scientists who will work to understand why the extreme single dose appears to have adverse effects.

Vitamin D and Heart Disease

The heart is basically a large muscle, and like skeletal muscle, it has receptors for vitamin D. (19) So perhaps it’s no surprise that studies are finding vitamin D deficiency may be linked to heart disease. The Health Professional Follow-Up Study checked the vitamin D blood levels in nearly 50,000 men who were healthy, and then followed them for 10 years. (20) They found that men who were deficient in vitamin D were twice as likely to have a heart attack as men who had adequate levels of vitamin D. Other studies have found that low vitamin D levels were associated with higher risk of heart failure, sudden cardiac death, stroke, overall cardiovascular disease, and cardiovascular death. (21-24) How exactly might vitamin D help prevent heart disease? There’s evidence that vitamin D plays a role in controlling blood pressure and preventing artery damage, and this may explain these findings. (25) Still, more research is needed before we can be confident of these benefits.

Vitamin D and Cancer

Nearly 30 years ago, researchers noticed an intriguing relationship between colon cancer deaths and geographic location: People who lived at higher latitudes, such as in the northern U.S., had higher rates of death from colon cancer than people who live closer to the equator. (26) Many scientific hypotheses about vitamin D and disease stem from studies that have compared solar radiation and disease rates in different countries. These can be a good starting point for other research but don’t provide the most definitive information. The sun’s UVB rays are weaker at higher latitudes, and in turn, people’s vitamin D levels in these high latitude locales tend to be lower. This led to the hypothesis that low vitamin D levels might somehow increase colon cancer risk. (2)

Since then, dozens of studies suggest an association between low vitamin D levels and increased risks of colon and other cancers. (1,27)  The evidence is strongest for colorectal cancer, with most (but not all) observational studies finding that the lower the vitamin D levels, the higher the risk of these diseases. (28-38) Vitamin D levels may also predict cancer survival, but evidence for this is still limited. (27) Yet finding such associations does not necessarily mean that taking vitamin D supplements will lower cancer risk.

The VITAL trial will look specifically at whether vitamin D supplements lower cancer risk. It will be years, though, before it releases any results. It could also fail to detect a real benefit of vitamin D, for several reasons: If people in the placebo group decide on their own to take vitamin D supplements, that could minimize any differences between the placebo group and the supplement group; the study may not follow participants for a long enough time to show a cancer prevention benefit; or study participants may be starting supplements too late in life to lower their cancer risk. In the meantime, based on the evidence to date, 16 scientists have circulated a “call for action” on vitamin D and cancer prevention: (27) Given the high rates of vitamin D deficiency in North America, the strong evidence for reduction of osteoporosis and fractures, the potential cancer-fighting benefits of vitamin D, and the low risk of vitamin D supplementation, they recommend widespread vitamin D supplementation of 2000 IU per day. (27)

Vitamin D and Immune Function

Vitamin D’s role in regulating the immune system has led scientists to explore two parallel research paths: Does vitamin D deficiency contribute to the development of multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes, and other so-called “autoimmune” diseases, where the body’s immune system attacks its own organs and tissues? And could vitamin D supplements help boost our body’s defenses to fight infectious disease, such as tuberculosis and seasonal flu? This is a hot research area and more findings will be emerging.

Vitamin D and Multiple Sclerosis: Multiple sclerosis (MS) rates are much higher far north (or far south) of the equator than in sunnier climes, and researchers suspect that chronic vitamin D deficiencies may be one reason why. One prospective study to look at this question found that among white men and women, those with the highest vitamin D blood levels had a 62 percent lower risk of developing MS than those with the lowest vitamin D levels. (39) The study didn’t find this effect among black men and women, most likely because there were fewer black study participants and most of them had low vitamin D levels, making it harder to find any link between vitamin D and MS if one exists.

Vitamin D and Type 1 Diabetes: Type 1 diabetes is another disease that varies with geography—a child in Finland is about 400 times more likely to develop it than a child in Venezuela. (40) Evidence that vitamin D may play a role in preventing type 1 diabetes comes from a 30-year study that followed more than 10,000 Finnish children from birth: Children who regularly received vitamin D supplements during infancy had a nearly 90 percent lower risk of developing type 1 diabetes than those who did not receive supplements. (41)  Other European case-control studies, when analyzed together, also suggest that vitamin D may help protect against type 1 diabetes. (42) No randomized controlled trials have tested this notion, and it is not clear that they would be possible to conduct.

Vitamin D, the Flu, and the Common Cold: The flu virus wreaks the most havoc in the winter, abating in the summer months. This seasonality led a British doctor to hypothesize that a sunlight-related “seasonal stimulus” triggered influenza outbreaks. (43) More than 20 years after this initial hypothesis, several scientists published a paper suggesting that vitamin D may be the seasonal stimulus. (44) Among the evidence they cite:

• Vitamin D levels are lowest in the winter months. (44) 
• The active form of vitamin D tempers the damaging inflammatory response of some white blood cells, while it also boosts immune cells’ production of microbe-fighting proteins. (44) 
• Children who have vitamin D-deficiency rickets are more likely to get respiratory infections, while children exposed to sunlight seem to have fewer respiratory infections. (44) 
• Adults who have low vitamin D levels are more likely to report having had a recent cough, cold, or upper respiratory tract infection. (45)

A recent randomized controlled trial in Japanese school children tested whether taking daily vitamin D supplements would prevent seasonal flu. (46) The trial followed nearly 340 children for four months during the height of the winter flu season. Half of the study participants received pills that contained 1,200 IU of vitamin D; the other half received placebo pills. Researchers found that type A influenza rates in the vitamin D group were about 40 percent lower than in the placebo group; there was no significant difference in type B influenza rates. This was a small but promising study, and more research is needed before we can definitively say that vitamin D protects against the flu. But don’t skip your flu shot, even if vitamin D has some benefit.

Vitamin D and Tuberculosis: Before the advent of antibiotics, sunlight and sun lamps were part of the standard treatment for tuberculosis (TB). (47) More recent research suggests that the “sunshine vitamin” may be linked to TB risk. Several case-control studies, when analyzed together, suggest that people diagnosed with tuberculosis have lower vitamin D levels than healthy people of similar age and other characteristics. (48)   Such studies do not follow individuals over time, so they cannot tell us whether vitamin D deficiency led to the increased TB risk or whether taking vitamin D supplements would prevent TB. There are also genetic differences in the receptor that binds vitamin D, and these differences may influence TB risk. (49) Again, more research is needed. (49)

Vitamin D and Risk of Premature Death

A promising report in the Archives of Internal Medicine suggests that taking vitamin D supplements may even reduce overall mortality rates: A combined analysis of multiple studies found that taking modest levels of vitamin D supplements was associated with a statistically significant 7 percent reduction in mortality from any cause. (50) The analysis looked at the findings from 18 randomized controlled trials that enrolled a total of nearly 60,000 study participants; most of the study participants took between 400 and 800 IU of vitamin D per day for an average of five years. Keep in mind that this analysis has several limitations, chief among them the fact that the studies it included were not designed to explore mortality in general, or explore specific causes of death. More research is needed before any broad claims can be made about vitamin D and mortality. (51)

About A.B.C.D.E.

Every child needs to learn the ABC’s of life. When it comes to establishing healthy habits, you can teach them how to “ABCDE” (Act Boldly to Change Diet and Exercise).

Why is this important?

• Good nutrition and plenty of exercise are the building blocks for strong growth, healthy development, and lifelong wellbeing for children.

• These days, too many children are not receiving the proper nutrition or enough exercise:

  • - They are not eating enough - an estimated 16 to 17 million children live in homes where they are at risk of going hungry (approx. 1 in 6 households).

  • - They are not eating enough healthy food – an estimated 1 in 3 children are overweight and about 1 in 6 (ages 6-17) are obese.

  • - They are not getting enough exercise – only 30% of children (aged 6 to 17) participated in 20 minutes plus of vigorous physical activity on a daily basis. Children need to get 60 minutes of exercise on a daily basis.

What are the benefits of good nutrition and daily exercise for kids?

Mental and behavioral benefits

• Good nutrition is essential to healthy brain development in children which is, of course, critical to learning.

• Children who exercise regularly and eat healthily are likely to:

  • - perform better academically 

  • - feel better about themselves, their bodies, and their abilities

  • - cope with stress and regulate their emotions better

  • - avoid feelings of low self-esteem, anxiety, and depression.

• Establishing healthy eating and exercise habits early in life can lead to long term healthy behavior in adulthood.

Physical benefits

• Children need a wide variety of nutrients (e.g., protein, complex carbohydrates, healthy fats, minerals, vitamins) to assist in their daily growth and development and to protect them from childhood illnesses.

• Daily exercise also helps children to build stronger muscles and bones and limit excess body fat.

• Healthy eating also cuts down on risk for cavities, eating disorders and unhealthy weight control behaviors (i.e., fasting, skipping meals, eating very little food, vomiting, using diet pills, laxatives, or diuretics), malnutrition, and iron deficiency.

• Healthy eating and consistent physical activity help to prevent chronic illnesses that appear in adulthood associated with obesity, e.g., heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and several forms of cancer.

What are the effects of different settings on the eating and exercise habits of kids?

In the home:

• Lack of access to healthy, wholesome foods and inadequate physical activity - contributes to kids becoming overweight and not getting adequate nutrition for their growth and development. Children need at least 60 minutes of daily physical activity in the form of physical play or sports.

• Hunger – kids who do not get enough to eat are at risk of developing chronic health conditions, behavioral problems, academic struggles, anxiety, depression, and even obesity especially if they only have access to poor quality processed food.

• Unhealthy weight control behaviors - have been found to co-occur with obesity. Many adolescents, particularly teenage girls, have body image concerns and engage in these behaviors threatening both their physical and mental health. 

• Media effects –

  • - Food advertising - targeted at children is dominated by commercials for unhealthy food (e.g., candy, sugary cereals, sugary beverages, processed snack foods, fast food restaurants). Food advertising is pervasive and can be found on multiple media platforms (TV, web, and even embedded in computer games).

  • - Advertising by other industries - often objectifies girls and women, contributing to body dissatisfaction, eating disorders, low self-esteem, and depression.

  • - TV watching – television viewing is linked to childhood obesity because it displaces physical activity, increases snacking behavior while watching, exposes kids to potentially harmful advertising, and reduces their resting metabolism.

At school:

• Risks to academic achievement - result from children not getting adequate nutrition and physical activity. Hunger can be particularly damaging to children’s progress in school and cognitive development overall.

• Overabundance of unhealthy foods - too many schools offer poor nutritional choices in the form of unhealthy school lunches or even vending machines filled with candy, processed snacks, and sugary beverages.

• Lack of opportunities for physical activity - many schools have scaled back requirements for a daily recess and do not prioritize physical education opportunities for children at every age.

• Peer behaviors – peers can serve as remarkably powerful role models for children and may share their unhealthy eating or exercise habits with them.

• Stigma of being overweight – can lead to social and psychological distress (e.g., depression, low self esteem). Bullying and teasing from peers can be particularly damaging and teachers and school staff may attribute less desirable personality characteristics to obese youth and their families.

In the neighborhood:

• Overabundance of unhealthy foods – there are a growing number of communities called “food deserts” where supermarkets and grocery stores are scarce or charge higher prices for healthy foods than processed foods. In addition, many underserved communities are populated with fast food restaurants that are often located near schools and playgrounds.

• The built environment – lack of adequate and safe parks, bike lanes, playgrounds, recreational facilities, or walkways can restrict opportunities for children and teens to get exercise.

Why are you critical to establishing healthy behaviors in your kids?

• You are role models

  • - Children are instinctively primed to imitate their parents and caregivers. They are incredibly sensitive to the messages that are sent about eating and exercise. You exert the most influence on your children’s behavior and can model healthy attitudes and habits toward food and physical activity that persist as they grow up.

• You are gatekeepers

  • - Parents and caregivers control the types of food children have access to in the home and can maximize access to healthy, wholesome foods (fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, whole grains, and low-fat dairy).

  • - You can also monitor children’s diet, exercise, and limit media consumption (TV/video watching, web surfing, and videogames).

•  You are taste-setters

  • - Parents and caregivers significantly influence the likes and dislikes that children attach to certain foods. These influences can last a lifetime. Each of us can probably remember a favorite home cooked meal from our childhood. There is even research that suggests that this begins in infancy; children who are breastfed may be exposed to different flavors in their mother’s breast milk than the sugars and fats in infant formula. Breastfeeding may provide protection from the development of obesity.

  • - Eating with your children at regular family mealtimes can help establish positive nutrition habits and healthy weights for children.
    

• You are advocates

  • - Parents and caregivers can push local leaders to introduce affordable transportation (e.g., bus or shuttle lines) to supermarkets or grocery stores if there are none in their communities.

  • - You can call for the construction of parks or playgrounds and restriction of fast food places in your neighborhood.

  • - You can push school administrators to introduce after-school programs that incorporate physical activity or nutrition education, healthier school lunches, and policies that eliminate the use of vending machines on school grounds.

  • - You along with members of your community can volunteer to coach afterschool sports.

The foods we eat can affect our risk of developing certain types of cancer. High energy and high fat diets can lead to obesity and are generally thought to increase the risk of some cancers. Plant-based diets high in fresh fruits, vegetables, legumes and wholegrain foods may help to prevent cancer.

Diet is just one of the lifestyle factors that influence the risk of developing cancer. Smoking, obesity, alcohol, sun exposure and physical activity levels are also important. Although some foods can affect cancer risk, there is no evidence that specific foods can cause or cure cancer.

Food and some common cancers
Some common cancers (and how they are affected by what we eat) include:

• Lung cancer – this is the leading cause of death from cancer in the world and smoking is mostly responsible. There is convincing evidence that diets high in vegetables and fruits are protective against lung cancer. It is thought that compounds called carotenoids (present in significant amounts in fruits and vegetables), as well as vitamin E, are probably responsible for some of this effect. However, the use of antioxidant supplements, such as beta-carotene and vitamin E, has not been proven to be effective in either prevention or treatment of lung cancer and may, in fact, increase the risk of developing cancer in those who smoke. While fruits and vegetables may offer some degree of protection, not smoking in the first place is by far the best prevention.

• Breast cancer – this is the most common type of cancer in women in the world. There is an increased risk of breast cancer with factors such as rapid early growth, greater adult height and weight gain in adulthood. Much of the risk of developing breast cancer involves factors that influence oestrogen levels during a woman’s reproductive life, such as age of menarche (first period), number of pregnancies and breastfeeding practices. Post menopausal women who are carrying too much weight, especially around their middle, have more than twice the average risk of breast cancer. Diets high in mono-unsaturated fat and high in vegetables and fruits may reduce the risk, while alcohol consumption increases the risk.

• Prostate cancer – a quarter of all new cancers diagnosed in men in UK is prostate cancer. Vegetables, soy in particular may decrease the risk, while a high fat diet that comprises mostly animal fat sources (such as dairy products, fatty meats and takeaway foods) may increase the risk. Lycopene is a potent antioxidant found in tomatoes, tomato-based products, watermelon and strawberries. It may also help lower the risk of prostate cancer.

• Bowel cancer – this is the fourth most common cancer in the world. Up to 70 per cent of cases can be prevented by following a healthy lifestyle. Keeping a healthy weight, being physically active and a diet high in vegetables and fibre are protective, while consuming a large amount of red meat (especially processed meat) and alcohol may increase the risk.

Foods to ‘eat less’
Foods to limit in your diet or eat less of include:

• Fatty processed red meats

• Highly processed foods that are low in fibre

• Heavily salted and pickled foods.

Foods to ‘eat more’
The strongest protective anti-cancer effect has been shown with:

• Vegetables, especially raw vegetables or salads

• Leafy green vegetables

• Carrots

• Tomatoes

• Citrus fruits

• Cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cabbage, brussels sprouts, bok choy and other Asian greens.

Include more of these vegetables and fruits in your diet along with other varieties.

Seven a day
Eating seven or more serves daily of a variety of grains, grain products, legumes, roots and tubers will also provide protective benefits against cancer. The less processed the grains, the better. Diets high in refined starch and refined sugar may increase the risk of stomach cancer and bowel cancer.

Meat and bowel cancer
There is now convincing scientific evidence that eating processed meat increases bowel cancer risk. The World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) has recently recommended that people avoid eating processed meat. Processed meats are any meat that has been preserved by curing, salting or smoking, or by adding chemical preservatives. These meats include hot dogs, ham, bacon and some sausages and burgers.

It is recommended that children are not given processed meats at all. This is because many of the habits we develop as children last into adulthood. Substitutes for processed meats that are recommended for children include poultry or fish, low fat cheese or small amounts of lean meat.

The WCRF also recommends limiting the amount of fresh red meat we eat to 500g (cooked weight) a week. This is because there is convincing evidence that red meat also increases a person’s risk of bowel cancer.

Some research suggests that eating burnt or charred meat may increase cancer risk, but the evidence is unclear.

Fats and cancer
There has been a great deal of interest in the possible association between fat and cancer. Current evidence does not indicate a direct link between fat intake and particular types of cancer (with the possible exception of prostate cancer). However, a high fat diet may lead to obesity, which is a risk factor for several cancers including cancer of the colon, breast, kidney, oesophagus, gallbladder and endometrium.

Supplements are not the answer
Results of studies that show a protective effect of foods containing certain nutrients should not be taken to mean that these nutrients, when isolated and taken as supplements, will provide the same benefits for cancer prevention. In some cases, there has been an increased risk of cancer in those people who take nutrient supplements at doses higher than the amount of that nutrient normally eaten in foods.

Suspect foods examined
While a high energy, low fibre diet may increase a person’s risk of developing cancer, some individual foods have also been singled out as potentially causing cancer (carcinogenic). These include:

• Artificial sweeteners – such as aspartame, saccharin and cyclamate. Laboratory rats can develop bladder cancer if fed huge amounts of saccharin or cyclamate, although this is at levels thousands of times greater than a normal diet. International studies agree that humans aren’t affected in the same way. Artificial sweeteners are considered safe to eat.

• Cured, pickled or salty foods – there is no conclusive evidence that red meat causes cancer. However, bacon and other cured or pickled meats contain a substance called nitrate, which has the potential to cause cancer in laboratory animals when eaten in huge doses. How this research relates to humans isn’t clear. To be on the safe side, it is best to limit the amount of cured meats in the diet because they are generally high in fat and salt. Salt has also been associated with an increased risk of stomach cancer and should be consumed in limited amounts.

• Burnt or barbecued foods – a group of carcinogenic substances called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) can be produced if foods are overheated or burnt. Although charred or smoked foods could contain traces of PAHs, experts agree that the amount in the average UK diet is too low to be considered a significant cancer risk. However, when cooking, it’s best to use relatively low temperature methods wherever possible. These include steaming, boiling, poaching, stewing, casseroling, braising, baking, stir-frying, microwaving or roasting. Avoiding char-grilled meats and foods would also be smart.

• Peanuts – some laboratory animals can develop cancer after eating peanuts that are contaminated with toxin-producing moulds. However, peanuts sold in the UK are generally uncontaminated and contamination is routinely screened for.

• Alcohol – consuming alcohol increases the risk of cancers of the mouth, pharynx, larynx, oesophagus, breast and liver. The risk is even greater in those people who smoke. Alcohol has also been associated with colon, breast and rectal cancers. Men should drink less than two standard drinks a day and women less than one standard drink a day.

Treating cancer with food
While food plays an important role in preventing some cancers, the therapeutic value of food in treating existing cancer is less clear. It is true that a person with cancer needs excellent nutrition in order to better cope with the physical demands of the illness and the rigours of medical treatment. However, claims that particular foods, vitamins or micro nutrients can kill cancer cells should be viewed with scepticism To date, there is little scientific proof that a particular food or supplement can cure cancer or destroy cancer cells.

Recently some Japanese studies have found that green tea may delay the development and spread of certain cancers. Other studies have suggested that soy may also have a similar effect. Although this work is preliminary, it may suggest a more important role for food in the treatment of cancer in the future.

Nutrition for the person with cancer is important for many reasons, including:

• The immune system needs bolstering to fight at full strength.

• The diet may be adjusted to cope with various symptoms, such as constipation, diarrhoea or nausea.

• Loss of appetite or an increased metabolism means that high energy foods may need to be included in the daily diet.

• Extra protein may be needed to help prevent loss of muscle from weight loss.

Things to remember

• High fat, low fibre diets may increase the risk of many cancers, including bowel, lung, prostate and uterine cancers.

• You can reduce your risk of developing cancer by eating more fresh fruits, leafy green vegetables and wholegrain foods.

• Even though diet can influence your risk of developing cancer, there is little evidence that special foods can be used to cure existing cancers.

No special diet or ‘miracle food’ can cure arthritis, but some conditions may be helped by avoiding or including certain foods or supplements. Arthritis is a general term describing over 100 different conditions that cause pain, stiffness and (often) inflammation in one or more joints. Everyone with arthritis can benefit from eating a healthy, well-balanced diet to maintain general good health.

Some conditions may be helped by dietary changes. For example, people with inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis seem to benefit from an increased intake of omega-3 fats, found in oily fish such as sardines and salmon, while gout sufferers may benefit from avoiding foods high in purines, including offal, shellfish and beer and drinking plenty of water.
Always seek the advice of your doctor or dietitian before changing your diet. You may be restricting your food intake unnecessarily or taking too much of products (such as mineral supplements) that may have no impact on your condition at all. Some supplements can also interact with other medications.

General recommendations
General dietary recommendations for a person with arthritis include:

• Eat a well-balanced diet. This will help to maintain general good health, and a healthy weight.

• Avoid crash dieting or fasting.

• Increase dietary calcium to reduce the risk of osteoporosis in later life.

• Drink plenty of non-alcoholic fluids.

• Keep your weight within the normal range. Excess bodyweight increases the stress on joints, especially weight-bearing joints such as the knee and hips.

Dietary modification for gout
Uric acid is a waste product that is normally excreted from the body in urine. Gout is a type of arthritis characterised by the build-up of uric acid in the joints (such as the big toe), which causes inflammation and pain.
It is believed that lowering uric acid levels through small changes in your diet may help reduce the chance of future gout attacks. These changes include:

• Restrict or avoid alcohol.

• Avoid binge drinking.

• Restrict or avoid offal meats, such as liver, kidneys and brains.

• Restrict or avoid shellfish, such as prawns and scallops.

• Restrict or avoid some sea foods including sardines, herrings, mackerel and anchovies.

• Restrict or avoid products containing yeast, such as beer and Vegemite.

• Drink plenty of non-alcoholic fluids.

• Avoid fasting or ‘crash’dieting

• Make sure you don’t overeat on a regular basis.

• Take your time when eating.

Omega-3 fats and Inflammation
Foods that contain omega-3 fats have been found to help reduce the inflammation associated with some forms of arthritis, such as rheumatoid arthritis. These effects are modest compared with medications, however they do not have side effects, and may also have other health benefits, such as reduced heart disease.

Foods rich in omega-3 fats include:

• Fish – oily fish such as salmon and sardines, have greater amounts of omega-3 fats

• Linseeds and linseed (flaxseed) oil

• Canola (rapeseed) oil

• Walnuts

• Foods fortified with omega-3, such as margarines and eggs

• Some fish oil supplements.

It is important not to confuse fish oils with fish liver oils (such as cod liver oil and halibut liver oil). Fish liver oils also contain vitamin A. Large amounts of vitamin A can cause serious side effects. Ask your doctor before taking any supplements, to ensure the correct dosage.

Other supplements
The supplements glucosamine and chondroitin are popular – yet evidence about their success in treating arthritis is limited.

Studies show that glucosamine and chondroitin, taken either separately or in combination, may relieve pain for people with osteoarthritis where there has been a breakdown of cartilage. There is no evidence that these supplements are effective for any other forms of arthritis.

Glucosamine and chondroitin may interact with other medications, including warfarin, and should only be taken after consultation with your doctor.

Obesity may worsen arthritis symptoms
If you are overweight or obese, the extra load on your joints may be exacerbating your arthritis symptoms, especially if your affected joints include those of the hip, knee or spine. There is also a clear link between being overweight and an increased risk of developing osteoarthritis.

To lose excess weight you must be active, but this can be difficult for people with arthritis due to pain or stiffness. See your doctor, dietitian or health professional for information and advice.

Current evidence for dietary cures is sparse
Gout can be helped by avoiding some foods. However, there is no substantial scientific evidence that other forms of arthritis can be helped by avoiding particular foods, unless that person has specifically shown intolerance to them.
There is no evidence that acidic foods such as lemons, tomatoes, potatoes and eggplants or dairy foods trigger arthritis symptoms. These foods all contain important nutrients and avoiding them may be a health risk.

Tips for managing arthritis and diet
If you think a particular food may aggravate your arthritis, it can help to keep a diary of your food intake and symptoms. After a month, you may have some idea about which food could be provoking symptoms. Discuss these results with your doctor or a dietitian.
Don’t cut whole food groups from your diet – for example, all dairy products – without talking to your doctor, as you may miss out on important vitamins and minerals.

Remember that remission may be coincidental
The symptoms of arthritis, particularly the inflammatory types, can change for no apparent reason. Don’t assume any improvement in your symptoms is due to what you eat or avoid. Be guided by your health professional.

Things to remember

• Arthritis is a general term describing over 100 different conditions that cause pain, stiffness and (often) inflammation in one or more joints.

• No special diet or ‘miracle food’ can cure arthritis, but some conditions may be helped by dietary changes.

• Fish oil can ease the symptoms of inflammatory types of arthritis, such as rheumatoid arthritis.

• The symptoms of gout can be eased by avoiding alcohol and offal meats, and by drinking plenty of water.

After years of denying the health benefits of sunlight, conventional researchers are finally starting to recognize the important role that ultraviolet light plays in human health. Getting sunlight on your skin, research now shows, is extremely important for preventing and even reversing chronic diseases. I'm talking about prostate cancer, breast cancer, cervical cancer, mental depression, osteoporosis and even, to some extent, type 2 diabetes. The interactions between sunlight and body chemistry for these diseases are quite complex, and I'm not going to go into them all here, but let me give you the highlights.

Vitamin D is essential for calcium absorption

First, you most likely already know the importance of calcium for your health. If you don't have enough calcium circulating through your blood, you're going to have cardiovascular problems and you will probably end up with heart disease. Calcium is crucial for healthy nervous system function, as well.

If you've read any of the promotional material about coral calcium and all the different diseases that calcium can prevent or even help cure, then you have a pretty good idea about some of the practical applications of calcium. Now, I don't think that calcium all by itself is going to reverse many chronic diseases, but without calcium, there's no question that you will be accelerating those diseases and reducing your lifespan.

Here's the kicker: Without vitamin D in your small intestine, your body will not absorb calcium even if you take an excess of supplements. This is the single most important point, and I don't think I've ever been able to get this point across with enough emphasis. You must have vitamin D in your body in order to use calcium. So if you're out there taking coral calcium supplements or eating a lot of green leafy vegetables, but not getting sunlight or ultraviolet radiation on your skin, then you are probably not absorbing the calcium you are going to such great trouble to ingest.

Reversing osteoporosis with sunlight

Sunlight can actually reverse osteoporosis. A lot of senior citizens are taking calcium supplements but not getting sunlight, so the calcium is passing right through their bodies. As a result, they're losing bone mineral density. However, by adding vitamin D to the equation through sunlight (remember, your skin generates vitamin D in response to sunlight exposure), senior citizens can start assimilating calcium and rebuilding their bones.

This is information that doesn't get told to senior citizens, and modern doctors don't even understand it. They think that you treat osteoporosis with drugs, which is ridiculous. The only thing you need in order to treat osteoporosis is sunlight, calcium and a little bit of physical exercise. You will rebuild bone mineral density very rapidly on that kind of program.

The bottom line: Get some sun on your skin

Make sure that you're getting sunlight on your skin. If you do this one thing, and do it consistently, it will create such a positive health outcome. Sunlight will make a world of difference in your life. It will change your mood. It will change your biochemistry. It will enhance your bone mineral density, and it will help your body beat or prevent various forms of cancer.

In fact, vitamin D is a key compound in the regulation of cancer cell growth. Researchers are just now figuring out that people who are chronically deficient in vitamin D, which includes most Americans, are at far greater risk of a variety of different cancers. Vitamin D has been shown to be the single most powerful chemical compound known to medical science for preventing hormone-related cancers such as breast cancer and prostate cancer.

Why antioxidants are important before exposing yourself to UV light

Now, you might ask, "What if I can't get sunlight? What if I live in a northern climate or a cloudy climate and I just can't get sunlight?" First, as I said before, you can go visit a tanning salon. This is only the second-best choice. Personally, I don't like artificial light even if it is ultraviolet -- sunlight is far healthier for you because it has a full spectrum of energy that's not found in a tanning bed. But a tanning salon is your best alternative. If you can't get out in the sunlight, go sign up with a tanning salon.

If you do that, it is crucial that you supplement with superfoods and high levels of antioxidants. If you don't have high levels of antioxidants in your tissues, you may suffer skin damage from excessive ultraviolet radiation. By taking high levels of antioxidants, however, you will build up an internal sunscreen, and your skin's response to sun exposure will be very different. It will be healthy and adaptive, meaning that you won't burn. Instead, you will tan. This is true even if you've never tanned in your life.

I know exactly what I'm talking about here -- I used to be one of the most fair-skinned people around. I would sunburn very easily. I grew up in the Midwest, and after just half an hour in the summer sun I would be burned beet red. My skin would peel, and I would be in pain for days. Now, thanks to the antioxidants I'm taking, I can go out in the desert in Arizona, in the middle of the summer, and spend three hours under the sun with no sunscreen whatsoever and not burn at all. What's the difference? Do I have new skin and new genetics? Of course not. I just have better nutrition.

This is one of those truths about health that medical science currently considered heresy, but will eventually acknowledge as true in the years ahead.

Protect your skin with outstanding internal nutrition

Nutrition makes all the difference when it comes to sun exposure. Keep in mind that it takes a little bit of time for this nutrition to work its way into the tissues of your skin. So if you haven't been engaging in good nutrition but you want sunlight, don't make the mistake of jumping out into the sun right away. Give yourself a couple of weeks following high-density nutritional supplementation first (and use whole food-based supplements, not the cheap chemical multivitamins sold at retail).

One of the best products you can get to assist with this is called astaxanthin. Astaxanthin will greatly boost the antioxidant count in your tissues, protect you from sunlight, and function as an internal sunscreen. It will also reduce inflammation and protect your nervous system, including your eyes, from damage from a variety of sources, including oxidative damage, free radical damage, and damage from ultraviolet radiation. Getting astaxanthin into your diet is very wise.

You should also add superfood supplements to your diet. If you're not already taking a green foods product, I strongly urge you to order one and make it part of your daily diet. If you don't like the taste of it at first, keep in mind that you will get used to it, and you can start small. Blend half a teaspoonful into your favorite drink. I recommend bananas and either milk or soymilk. That makes a delicious milkshake. You can blend in a little supergreen powder and start increasing your dosage until you're putting in a couple of heaping tablespoonfuls each morning. Believe me, you'll not only get used to the taste, you'll come to like it.

You can also buy a variety of other nutritional supplements. There's a product available at health food stores called Berry Green. It's a whole food concentrate. It's important that you don't make the mistake of relying on isolated vitamins; eat whole food concentrates if you want to boost your antioxidant count, which will help protect you from sunburn.

Alternative food sources of vitamin D

If you can't get into a tanning booth, or don't want to, another alternative to sunlight is to find other sources of vitamin D. The best way to do that is to drink cod liver oil on a daily basis. A tablespoonful of cod liver oil would go a long way toward boosting your vitamin D count and protecting you from chronic disease.

Don't assume that this tastes unpleasant just because it's from fish. Cod liver oil is actually close to tasteless. It's sort of like drinking olive oil or corn oil. Additionally, you can buy mint- or orange-flavored cod liver oil from health food stores and it won't taste objectionable at all. You can even mix it into your blended morning drink if you want. Either way, get vitamin D into your diet.

Don't believe for a second that vitamin-D-fortified milk is going to give you enough vitamin D. Most of the vitamin D in milk has been destroyed by excess exposure to light. It's a terrible way to get vitamin D. The most efficient vitamin D supplement is still fish oil, and cod liver oil is the best way to go.

There are four main points you should take from this:

1. You have to get sunlight into your life in order to be healthy and prevent or even reverse major chronic diseases. Start getting more sun.
2. Boost your antioxidant count, because antioxidants will protect you from the risk of overexposure to sunlight. Astaxanthin, green foods powder, Berry Green, and other green foods are all excellent sources. Get those supplements now and find ways to work them into your diet starting today.
3. If you can't get sunlight, visit a tanning booth to get ultraviolet radiation. It's a secondary choice, but it's better than doing nothing. Remember not to use tanning booths for too long, and be sure to have great nutrition for at least 30 days before tanning in a booth.
4. If you can't get sunlight or get to a tanning booth, find other sources of vitamin D. The best source is cod liver oil, which you can mix into a delicious shake the same as you would most whole food supplements.

If you do these things, you will simply amaze your doctor with your improved health. You will have healthier bones, tissues and blood. You'll help prevent cancer, depression and gum disease. You'll heal more quickly from injury, and your mood will markedly improve. This is the power of vitamin D, a nutrient so miraculous that if it could be patented and sold for profit, it would be among the top selling drugs in the world.

                                  

Along with a balanced diet and regular exercise, multivitamins are a good way to stay in good health. For just pennies a day, they may help lower your risk of cancer, heart disease and osteoporosis as well as prevent some birth defects. When undertaking body weight management, taking a multi-vitamin will keep you strong and healthy. Since you are changing your eating habits in one way or another, you want to make sure you are getting in a good amount of your essential vitamins and minerals. Look to include vitamins: A, D, E & B-Complex (B1, B2, B6, B12), minerals: calcium, magnesium, potassium, copper, manganese, chromium, zinc, iodine, boron, iron & selenium in addition to an anti-oxidant. There are many misconceptions about vitamins and the health benefits they offer.
Vitamins play an important role in keeping the body healthy. However, taking large doses of certain vitamins can actually be harmful. For most people, it is best to get the vitamins our bodies need from eating a variety of healthy, unprocessed foods rather than by taking supplements. Vitamin supplements are frequently misused and taken as a form of medicine to treat ailments such as colds or to counteract lifestyle issues such as stress. Contrary to popular belief, vitamins aren’t drugs or miracle cures. They are organic compounds that participate in various metabolic functions. High-dose supplements should not be taken unless recommended under medical advice. Isolating the ‘active ingredient’ is not the answer Proper balance and adequate levels of essential nutrients is important for a range of complex processes in our body. When vitamins are taken as supplements, they are introduced into the body at levels that could never be achieved by eating even the healthiest of diets. They are also sent in ‘alone’. When they occur in food, vitamins have many other companions to help them along the way. For instance, provitamin A (beta-carotene) in food is accompanied by hundreds of its carotenoid relatives. Simply taking a vitamin pill is not an instant fix for feeling run down or lacking in energy. It is the combination of a whole range of compounds (most of which we probably don’t even know about) in plant foods that gives us the protection. When you artificially remove one of them and provide it completely out of context, it may not be as effective and, in the case of some vitamins, can have negative effects
Recommended dietary intakes
 Many people mistakenly believe that since small amounts of vitamins are good for you, then large amounts must be better. In the case of vitamins, it is better to follow the rule of ‘less is more’. The vitamins A, D, E and K are fat soluble, which means they can be stored in the body. Taking high doses of these vitamins, especially vitamin A, over a long period of time can result in harmful levels in the body unless you have a medically diagnosed deficiency. Some of the water soluble vitamins can also cause side effects in high doses. For instance, vitamin B6 has been linked with nerve damage when taken in large doses. For a healthy adult, if supplements are used, they should generally be taken at levels close to the recommended dietary intake (RDI). High-dose supplements should not be taken unless recommended under medical advice. Deficiencies and illness
The human body is able to store vitamins. The fat soluble vitamins A, D, E and K can be locked away in the liver and body fat and stored for a long time. The water soluble vitamins, including B-complex and vitamin C, are mostly only stored for a shorter period of time. A vitamin deficiency takes weeks or months before it will affect your health. For instance, it would take months of no vitamin C before you developed scurvy. An occasional lapse in good eating will not harm you if your usual diet consists of a wide variety of fresh foods.
Sometimes supplements are needed
 Supplements do have a role to play for some groups of people. For instance, people on long-term restrictive weight loss diets or people with malabsorption problems such as diarrhoea, coeliac disease, cystic fibrosis or pancreatitis can benefit from supplements. Folic acid supplements are strongly recommend for women planning a pregnancy to reduce the risk having a baby with neural tube defects, like spina bifida. People who are advised by their doctor that they need to take vitamin supplements are encouraged to consult an accredited dietitian, who can work with their doctor to provide dietary advice related to the person’s situation. If you need to take a supplement, it is best to take multivitamins at the recommended dietary level, rather than single nutrient supplements or high-dose multivitamins.
The common cold and vitamin C
Many people think that vitamin C helps prevent the common cold. Despite exhaustive research across the world, there is still no strong evidence to prove this. Some studies have shown that taking large doses of vitamin C (more than 1,000mg per day) continuously or at the start of a cold may ease some of the symptoms and the duration, on average, making it about half a day shorter. It does not prevent you catching a cold. You also need to consider the health risks associated with taking large doses of vitamin C. Large doses may cause nausea, abdominal cramps, headaches, fatigue, kidney stones and diarrhoea. It may also interfere with your body’s ability to process (metabolise) other nutrients – for example, it could lead to dangerously raised levels of iron. Excessive amounts of vitamin C in the body can also interfere with medical tests, such as diabetes tests, giving a false result. Adults need about 45mg of vitamin C per day and any excess amount is excreted. Stress, depression and anxiety Some vitamin and omega-3 fatty acid deficiencies can lead to emotional disturbances. However, if you are feeling run down, it is more likely to be due to stress, depression or unhealthy lifestyle habits (such as insufficient sleep or smoking) rather than a vitamin deficiency. Feeling under pressure doesn’t automatically lead to a vitamin deficiency, so taking a vitamin supplement won’t necessarily make the stressful feelings go away. More serious mental illnesses, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, aren’t caused or prevented by vitamins, although a healthy diet and good nutrient intake can help support a person to better cope with their condition.
Vitamin E and heart disease
Vitamin E is widely promoted as a beneficial antioxidant that can help prevent heart disease. Unfortunately, several large-scale reviews have conclusively found no evidence that vitamin E supplements prevent death from heart disease. In fact, there may be greater risk of all-cause death from taking such supplements.
Cancer cures
Vitamin A in large doses does not cure cancer and can be toxic, particularly if taken as pills rather than food. There is some evidence that vitamin E could play a small role in preventing some cancers although, equally, there is evidence that it could hasten the onset of other types of cancer; however, this has not been conclusively proved or disproved. While it is argued by some that megadoses of antioxidants can help with the effectiveness of conventional cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy, the evidence is far from supporting this. In fact, it has been shown that megadoses of antioxidants can actually interfere with some medical treatments of cancer by helping to protect the cancer cells that the therapies aim to eradicate.
Some research findings
A number of studies into supplement use have shown negative findings. For instance: Vitamin A (beta-carotene) was thought to reduce the risk of some cancers but has been linked to an increase in others, such as lung cancer in smokers, if taken in supplement form. Several long-term studies have shown that prostate, breast and lung cancer risk are not decreased by taking high-dose supplements containing vitamins E or C or selenium. People taking high-dose vitamin E supplements have been found to have higher rates of early death (mortality).
Anti-ageing vitamins
Vitamin E is often singled out as the potential fountain of youth. However, there is no evidence that taking large doses of any vitamin can either stall or reverse the effects of ageing. Neither can any one vitamin restore a flagging sex drive or cure infertility. Vitamins and chronic disease
In developed countries, vitamin deficiency is rare but the inadequate intake of some vitamins is not so rare and has been linked to a number of chronic diseases. These include cardiovascular disease, cancer and osteoporosis. There is ongoing research to study the effects of taking vitamin supplements to prevent chronic disease, and evidence around nutrition and diet is constantly changing. It is important you consult with your doctor before taking vitamin supplements in high doses.
Things to remember
Vitamins are not drugs or miracle cures. Taking large doses of vitamins can be harmful because your body only needs vitamins in very tiny amounts. Eating plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains and cereals will give your body most of the vitamins your body needs at the right level and in the right balance. Vitamin supplements can’t replace a healthy diet, but a general multivitamin may help if your diet is inadequate.
People who may need vitamin supplements include pregnant and breastfeeding women, people who consume alcohol in amounts over the recommended level, drug users and the elderly.