cancers, especially the most common — breast, colon, and prostate—are
directly proportional to the dietary fat intake.
Dietary fat not only retards the general effectiveness of the immune system, but also encourages the
absorption of carcinogens. For example, when the carcinogens in cigarette
smoke are absorbed through the lung tissue, the carrier vehicle for their
absorption is the fat in the blood. On a low-fat diet the body is less able to
absorb and transport carcinogens. Smokers on a high-fat diet have a higher
incidence of lung cancer than smokers on a lower fat diet. When we look at the
diets of those who contract lung cancer and never smoke, we find a lack of
fresh and raw fruits and vegetables.
It is important to note that a diet composed primarily of fresh fruits and fresh
vegetables is high in vitamins A, C, and E and high in beta carotene and
selenium. These are sometimes referred to as the antioxidant nutrients. They
are called antioxidants because they have the ability when combined with
apoproteins produced by the body to function as scavengers of toxins. They aid
in controlling excessive production of free radicals, which are extremely reactive
and destructive molecules.
New antioxidant nutrients are discovered every year, but they are not
available in food supplements or vitamins. All of these protective nutrients that
enable us to remain free of disease are found in the highest quantity in green
and yellow plants and fresh fruits. These newly discovered phytochemicals with
anticancer activity are being found in increasing numbers in fruits and
vegetables. This is one of the hottest areas in nutritional research today.
When we do not eat a diet that obtains most of its calories from fruits and
vegetables, we inevitably earn low levels of these antioxidants and protective
phytochemicals in our bloodstream. Low blood levels of beta carotene and
vitamin C have been linked in multiple studies with increases in cancer
mortality, including breast cancer, lung cancer, stomach cancer, and colon
cancer.A recent study reported in the medical journal Nutrition in Cancer
revealed that patients who had a low beta carotene level in their blood in
conjunction with a high triglyceride level had a more than tenfold increase in
the risk of breast cancer.
High beta carotene and vitamin C levels in the blood are markers for high
fruit and vegetable intake, therefore targeting those with a high level of the
thousands of other important protective nutrients that travel along with beta
carotene. We will never be able to buy them all in a health food store or
pharmacy; they can be obtained only by eating large amounts of a variety of
fruits and vegetables. Whenever we look at populations who consume high
levels of fruits and vegetables, we find reduced levels of cancer and disease in
genera1.
Our present-day diet is responsible for most of the ill health and premature
death observed today. In light of the preponderance of scientific evidence
available, it would be foolish to consume a diet containing more than 20 percent
fat, even though the National Cancer Institute still recommends a diet with no
more than 30 percent of calories from fat. Studies indicate that diets drawing
30 percent of calories from fats have negligible effect on cancer incidence.
To prevent cancer, fat intake must be reduced to the low levels found in countries
with extremely low cancer rates, such as China, where less than 15 percent of
calories are derived from fat.
In the massive China Health Study, fat intake in various provinces ranged
from 6 to 24 percent of calories. Breast as well as other cancers were
proportionally more prevalent as the fat intake increased. Less fat is consumed
in the areas of China where cancer incidence is lowest, and this level of fat is
much, much lower than what American authorities are recommending. (Our
government and our health authorities, like the American Cancer Society and
the American Heart Association, recommend a diet proven to cause high levels
of cancer and heart disease.)
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