Recently, she read many articles saying that sweet potato is the king of cancer and has a strong anti-cancer effect. She immediately put sweet potatoes at the top of her family's recipe, steamed sweet potatoes, baked sweet potatoes, sweet potato porridge, sweet potato rice ... On the other hand, she felt uneasy without eating one or two sweet potatoes every day.
After eating for half a month, Aunt Zhang had heartburn and acid reflux. Her children told her not to eat sweet potatoes for the time being, but Aunt Zhang didn't listen, thinking that anti-cancer food should still be eaten.
First, can sweet potatoes kill cancer cells?
Sweet potato can resist cancer and comes from 1995.
At that time, American biologists found that sweet potatoes contained a chemical called deoxyepiandrosterone (DHEA), which could be used to prevent cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, colon cancer and breast cancer.
Moreover, the substance was injected into mice, and it was found that the life span of these mice was longer than that of ordinary mice 1/3.
Modern medical research also shows that reactive oxygen species is one of the reasons for the proliferation and recurrence of cancer and cancer cells. Physical aging and arteriosclerosis are also related to reactive oxygen species.
Sweet potato contains vitamins and some antioxidants, which can prevent the formation of cancer cells and inhibit the proliferation of cancer cells by eliminating active oxygen.
This is the source of the saying that sweet potatoes are often on the list of anti-cancer and anti-cancer foods.
However, this is based on in vitro cytological research and animal experimental research. There is no evidence in clinical experience that sweet potato can kill cancer cells. In other words, there is no evidence that sweet potato can kill cancer cells.
Nutritionally speaking, sweet potato is rich in starch, dietary fiber, carotene and vitamins A, B, C, E, as well as potassium, iron, copper, selenium, calcium and other trace elements 10, which is one of the foods with balanced nutrition.
Even if sweet potato is nutritious, it is not recommended to eat more. It is suggested that China residents should eat 50-100g potato food every day to maintain a balanced diet.
Second, is there really a super anti-cancer food list?
Not only sweet potatoes, but also "super anti-cancer food list" is often seen on the Internet. The specific idea is nothing more than seeing that some nutrients have anti-cancer effects, thinking that this food is anti-cancer, and then eating this food or some health care products all the time, resulting in uneven intake of nutrients.
For example, omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids are considered to reduce the risk of tumor occurrence, and deep-sea fish rich in omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids such as salmon and tuna are considered as super anti-cancer foods;
Vegetables and fruits are rich in natural phytochemicals, such as resveratrol, sulforaphane, soybean isoflavone, lycopene and zeaxanthin, which have anticancer effects. Grapes, cauliflowers, beans and tomatoes rich in these phytochemicals are considered to have anti-cancer effects.
Dietary fiber is considered to reduce the risk of colon cancer, and whole wheat food is considered as anti-cancer food because it is rich in dietary fiber.
Because some nutrients or natural compounds have been proved to have anti-tumor effects in cell and animal experiments, it is inferred that these foods are "super anti-cancer foods". Like "sweet potato anti-cancer", these conclusions are often one-sided.
Third, what can be done to better prevent cancer?
In fact, the occurrence of tumor is multifactorial, including heredity, environment, food, psychology and other factors. Other things being equal, a healthy and balanced diet can reduce the risk of some tumors, but it is usually not achieved through a single food.
Different foods contain different nutrients, which can reduce the risk of cancer. In the end, only balanced nutrition can ensure the normal metabolism of the body every day and reduce the risk of cancer.
In addition, avoid eating too much refined sugar, such as sugary drinks; High-fat foods, such as fried chicken and French fries; Prohibition of alcohol and its beverage products; Salted fish, bacon and barbecue are prohibited.
Effective exercise more than 6000 steps a day, aerobic exercise 150 minutes a week (30 minutes a day, at least 5 days a week), and a balanced diet are the best choices for cancer prevention. Simply believing in a single super anti-cancer food may be self-defeating, leading to the lack of some nutrients, which in turn leads to malnutrition.
To sum up, what "anti-cancer foods" spread on the Internet cannot directly kill cancer cells in the human body, but these foods are often one of the foods recommended by us for a balanced diet every day.
These foods can promote the effective utilization of nutrients in the human body, improve the immunity of the body, and indirectly play an anti-cancer role by regulating blood sugar and blood lipid, improving constipation, increasing antioxidant components and trace elements.
Therefore, only by not being superstitious about any single food or health care product and establishing correct balanced eating habits and healthy living habits can the risk of cancer be minimized.