Interesting research

     At the website http://www.nutritionfacts.org/  in "vegetables versus breast cancer,"  I learned that there are 7 vegetables that are natural dietary sources of aromatase inhibitors.  Estrogen makes most breast cancers grow.  70% of breast cancer tumors can make their own estrogen from testosterone using the enzyme aromatase, thus the popularity of pharmaceuticals called aromatase-inhibitors.  6 vegetables do the same by lowering levels of aromatase in the body by 20%---they are bell peppers, broccoli, carrots, celery, green onions and spinach.  One vegetable, mushrooms, lowers the level of aromatase in the body by 60-65%!  Amazing.  Eat your veggies, especially mushrooms.  The type of mushrooms with the most aromatase inhibitors:  white button mushrooms, easily found in most grocery stores.

     At the same website, they reported on "how to treat diabetes".  A head-to-head study was done comparing the American Diabetes Association diet compared with a vegan diet.  Within 16 days of being on the vegan diet, diabetics were able to lower their insulin dose by 1/2.   The ADA diet slowed progress of the diabetes so that the diabetes worsened only a little during the study.  On the vegan diet, the diabetes actually got better.

     Small amounts of dark chocolate may improve health in a similar way to exercise according to a study done on mice.  Aerobic exercise increases the number of mitochondria, which produce the energy used by the cells.  The epicatechin in chocolate appears to do the same--particularly in heart and skeletal muscles.  This is still early research and only done on mice, so not a reason to stop exercising, but adding a bit of dark chocolate every day may help.

     According to the World Cancer Research Fund, a healthy diet and active lifestyle could prevent nearly 3 million cases of cancer a year.  Currently there are 12 million newly diagnosed cases of cancer annually---many due to junk/fast food diets, cigarettes, alcohol, and inactivity.   Let us all aim to be part of the 3 million prevented cases.