Curcumin: Food Chemical with Anti-Cancer ability in a Tumeric Diet

Turmeric (Curcuma longa) is a rhizomatous, herbaceous, perennial plant of the ginger family called Zingiberaceae. When not used fresh, turmeric rhizomes are boiled for several hours, dried in a hot oven and grinded into a deep, orange-yellow powder commonly used as a spice in curries. When used as a food additive, turmeric is mostly use in savoring dishes. Some of the foods which turmeric can be used include canned beverages, biscuits, sauces, yellow cakes, dairy products, soups, yoghurts and so on.

Research studies have tried to investigate the food chemicals found in turmeric to evaluate their potential effects on diseases such as arthritis, diabetes, cancer and other clinical disorders. According to a 2012 report by the US National Institute for Health, about 71 clinical trials are currently registered to use the food chemical in turmeric for various clinical disorders. One research showed that this food chemical in turmeric reduced the severity of pancreatic-associated lung injury in mice.

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Vitamin C: Common Food Chemical in our Diet with Amazing Anti-Cancer activity

Vitamin C or L-ascorbic acid or Ascorbate is an essential nutrient for humans and other animal species. Vitamin C as a chemical refers to a number of vitamers that have vitamin C activity in animals, including ascorbic acid and its salts, and other oxidized forms of the molecule, like dehydroascorbic acid. Ascorbate and ascorbic acid are both naturally present when either of them is introduced into the cells.

As food chemicals, vitamin C is widely used as a food additive to prevent scurvy and more importantly, oxidative stress. This food chemical can be oxidized in the human cells by the enzyme, L-ascorbate oxidase. Vitamin C is essentially a healthy thing to eat in foods in both an anti-cancer and non anti-cancer diet,

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Theaflavin: Anti-Cancer Food Chemical in Black Tea Diet

Whether it is green, white, oolong or black, the tea drink is certainly one of the healthy things to eat (or drink) on a daily basis. Tea has been known to be a power-house of anti-oxidants that have been discovered long ago to have both anti-cancer and non anti-cancer abilities. Because the discussion of tea in general is such a broad topic, this review will be taking a look at the anti-cancer perspective of black tea.

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Lentinan: Food Chemical with Anti-Cancer ability in a Shiitake mushroom Diet

The Shiitake Mushroom (Lentinula edodes) is an edible mushroom native to East Asia that has long been considered a delicacy as well as a medicinal mushroom. It is an edible fungus which is regarded as the second most commonly edible mushroom in the world. Extracts of Shiitake mushroom have been used in herbal remedies. As one of the healthy things to eat, the Shiitake mushroom offers so many non anti-cancer health benefits. It is a good source of protein. It contains selenium, a powerful anti-oxidant which helps prevent cell damage. The Shiitake mushroom is also rich in copper, a vital component in red blood cell production. It is a proven fact that Shiitake mushroom in our diet enhances immune effectiveness, cholesterol-lowering and possesses both anti-bacterial and anti-viral properties. Some research works also say that eating Shiitake mushroom fights the development and progression of cancer and AIDS by boosting the body’s immune system.

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Quercetin: Food Chemical that makes the Apple fruit a very important Anti-Cancer Diet

The apple fruit (Malus domestica) is a pomaceus fruit of the apple tree. It is the most widely known of the many members of the genus Malus that are used by humans. The apple fruit, as one of the healthy things to eat, is laced with important food chemicals that have both anti-cancer properties and other health benefits. The proof that that apple fruit is of great benefit to human health is shown in a report released in 2004. The report showed that the Red Delicious and Granny Smith apple varieties ranked 12^th and 13^th respectively amongst over 100 foods investigated by USDA scientists.

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Acetogenin: Healthy Food Chemical in Paw Paw Fruit found in an Anti-Cancer Diet

The Paw-Paw fruit (Asimina triloba), also known as Papaw or Papaya is an edible fruit associated with the custard-apple family. It is also a cousin of Graviola, Guanabana, Sweetsop and Soursop fruit. The Paw-Paw fruit is yet another food that has been added to our anti-cancer diet. As one of the healthy things to eat, the Paw-Paw fruit is known to have beneficial medicinal effect on the human body. This fruit is one of the few anti-cancer foods used for alternative cancer treatment because it contains food chemicals that can pass through the blood-brain barrier. In fact, this food chemical form the Paw-Paw fruit, and the tree as well have shown anti-cancer activity against a wide range of cancers especially adeno-carcinoma, colon and prostate cancer.

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