How to Eat to Reduce Your Cancer Risk

How to Eat to Reduce Your Cancer Risk

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Joseph Mercola, M.D., believes most cancers can be prevented by eating properly and avoiding exposures to toxic substances such as pesticides. In a recent article, he provided suggestions on what to eat for optimal health and prevention of cancer. He focused on the importance of organic foods, particularly grass-fed or pastured meals and animal products.

Here is his list of recommendations:

1. Eat healthy fats, and make those 75 to 85 percent of your total caloric intake. Include olives and olive oil; butter made from grass-fed organic milk; coconuts and coconut oil; raw nuts such as macadamia and pecans; seeds such as black sesame, black cumin, pumpkin and hemp seeds; avocados; grass-fed meats; lard and tallow; ghee (clarified butter); raw cacao butter; animal-based omega-3 fats and small fatty fish like sardines and anchovies.

2. Carbohydrates should comprise 8 to 15 percent of your daily calories. Eat twice as many fiber carbs as non-fiber (net) carbs. So if your total carbs make up 10 percent of your daily caloric intake, half of those should be fiber, which will help you manage your weight and lower your cancer risk. If you have cancer, limit your net carbs to 8, which will help lower inflammation, reduce cancer growth, lower your glucose level, reduce your mTOR and insulin levels, and lower your insulin growth factor-1 (a powerful hormone that is associated with cancer cell proliferation).

Chia seeds, berries, raw nuts, cauliflower, root vegetables such as onions and sweet potatoes, green beans, peas, broccoli, Brussels sprouts and psyllium seed husk are all superior sources of high-fiber carbohydrates.

3. Make protein 7 to 10 percent of your total calories. He recommends limiting protein to .5 grams per pound of lean body mass. For most people that would be 40 to 70 grams of protein daily. Dr. Mercola says too much meat has a stimulating effect on the mTOR pathway, which has a role in cancer as well as other diseases. Limited protein to just what your body requires for cell repair and maintenance inhibits mTOR, and minimizes the likelihood of cancer growth.