Nutrition and Cancer Prevention PDF

Preface

Nutrition plays an essential role in health and in the prevention of disease, including cancer. Epidemiological studies have estimated that approximately 35% of cancers are potentially avoidable by nutritional modification. These modifications include strategies such as caloric restriction and limitation of specific macronutrient groups. However, as this book reports, there is compelling evidence that essential foods contain micronutrient factors that confer protection from cancers, specifically the common cancers of the colon, breast, and prostate.

In Nutrition and Cancer Prevention, the top experts in the field present analyses of specific dietary components that may offer protection from common cancers. The book organizes these dietary components into the general classes of vitamins, minerals, phytosterols, polyphenols, isothiocyanates, saponins, and specialized lipids.

The introductory chapters update the descriptive epidemiology of the major cancers of the Western world as well as the general means by which diet may protect people from these cancers. Part II addresses the potential anticarcinogenic activities of vitamins A, D, E, C and folic acid, as well as some of their synthetic analogs. Part III focuses on studies of the minerals calcium and selenium: that calcium and calcium-sensing mechanisms in the gut affect colon cell differentiation and tumor formation and that diets of selenium-rich foods such as cereal grains, garlic, and broccoli are associated with reduced rates of cancers of the lung, colon, and prostate. Part IV discusses the phytosterols, plant compounds with chemical similarity to cholesterol. Diets rich in phytosterols are associated not only with reduced serum cholesterol and atherosclerosis, but also with decreased incidences of cancers of the breast and colon. Part V offers comprehensive analyses of the cancer chemoprotective activities of the class of nutrients broadly called polyphenols. Polyphenols include isoflavones from soy, flavonoids from soy and tea, catechins from green tea, resveratrol from grapes and red wine, lignans from flaxseed, and anthocyanins from berry fruits. Parts VI and VII detail the cancer chemoprotective effects of isothiocyanates and saponins. Isothiocyanates found in high amounts in broccoli, kale, and other cruciferous vegetables inhibit the metabolic activation of a variety of carcinogens. Saponins of ginseng and soy have antimutagenic and anticarcinogenic activities. Part VIII presents interesting evidence for the cancer chemoprotective potential of specialized dietary lipids, including omega-3 fatty acids, linoleic acid, and sphingolipids. Finally, Part IX addresses the roles of obesity and excess alcohol consumption in cancer development.

The book covers in detail those dietary components that have shown to have potential either in protection from cancer, in modulation of cancer development, or in the reduction of tumor metastasis. Supportive evidence includes epidemiological, experimental, and clinical studies. For each nutritional class, several leading experts present the scientific evidence addressing the potential mechanisms by which these dietary components may offer protection from cancer as well as future research directions.