Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Colon Cancer: A Cruel Health Condition

We all are aware of the dangerous disease called cancer. This deadly disease can occur to anybody at any time. It is actually a group of more than a hundred different diseases. By affecting the body's main unit cell, it can spread to any area of the body and thus can make people suffer a lot.
When it comes to colon cancer, like other body organs, the colon and rectum are also made up of various types of cells. According to the need of the body, the cells divide to produce more number of cells that helps to maintain a good health. However, when the cells keep dividing even when there is no bodily need, a mass of tissues grows. This group of added tissues is known as a growth or tumor and can be benign or malignant.
Benign tumors are not actually cancer and can be easily get rid of. Mostly, these types of tumors don't come back after treatment. In a way, they are little safe, as benign tumors do not spread to other body parts and can be treated easily.
Now, the question is that if benign tumors are not cancer then what kinds of tumors are called cancer. Malignant tumors are actually cancer. When this tumor occurs, it can invade and damage the tissues and organs around it. The most dangerous part of this tumor is that cancer cells can break away from the tumor and can enter into the blood steam or lymphatic system. Thus, it gets spread from the original tumor to form new tumors in the other body parts. In medical term, this process of spreading of cancer from part to another part of the body is known as metastasis. For instance: when colon cancer spreads to the liver, then the cancer cells in the liver are called as colon cancer cells and the disease is called metastatic colon cancer but not liver cancer.
Colon cancer is also known as colorectal cancer which is mostly arises from adenomatous polyps-clusters of abnormal cells in the glands covering the inner wall of the colon. With time, these abnormal growths expand and eventually degenerate to become adenocarcinomas.
People with adenomatous polyposis syndromes usually have a greater risk of suffering from this type of cancer. It is seemed that colon cancer usually occurs to people before the age 40. Apart from that, the factors that may increase the risk of developing colon cancer include: poor diet, obesity, smoking, drugs etc. Regarding diet, it is said that a diet with high-fiber and low-fat could help in preventing colon cancer. According to some research, exercise and a healthy diet including fresh fruits and vegetables is very beneficial in this regard.
Though the symptoms of this type of cancer can't be indicated properly, yet there are certain general symptoms that can be seen during colorectal cancer. Such as: fatigue, weakness, difficulty in breathing, changed bowel habits, narrow stools, diarrhea or constipation, blood stool, unusual loss of weight, pain in abdominal, cramps or bloating.

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Grapes - Every Day Foods That Kill Cancer and Contribute to Health

What About Grapes?
Grapes have been farmed for about 8000 years, starting in the Middle East. Yeast, which is found on the skin of grapes, led to the production of wine, with the first wineries being dated to around 4000 BC. Purple grapes are native to North America in the wild, and were a staple in the diet of many Indian tribes.
Today, I think, many of us take grapes for granted, and they are often overlooked from a nutritional standpoint. Sure, most of us have heard about resveretrol, but I think there is often a disconnect between the nutrients scientists isolate in the lab, and the food that we put on our table.
Grapes are easy to come by today. They are in nearly every grocery store, market and convenience store across North America. In Eastern and Mediterranean regions grapes are a staple food, but in North American, people eat less fruits and vegetables and more grains and animal protein.
So what is it that makes a grape one of the foods worth adding to your diet?
  • Low Glycemic Index- Even though grapes taste sweet, they have a relatively low glycemic index. This means they provide the benefit of better blood sugar control. Science has proven that an increase consumption of grapes, and grape products such as juice, are associated with better insulin control, and lower insulin resistance.
  • Resveretrol- Resveretrol is a health buzzword today, and for good reason. It is a compound found in the skin of grapes. It is actually a natural fungicide that helps protect the grape. As is often the case with plants in nature, their protective compounds are the ones that offer us the most health benefits. In this case, grapes grown organically tend to have the most resveretrol, because they need to develop their own defenses. Resveretrol has been proven as an anti-fungal, antimicrobial, and anti bacterial. Even more exciting is resveretrol's ability to help cut off the blood supply to cancerous tumors. As an anti-cancer agent, resveretrol is at the top of the list.
  • Antioxidants- Grapes, and specifically the antioxidants in them, have been scientifically proven to reduce blood pressure, protect heart muscle, and increase stores of the master antioxidant glutathione which protects our cells from aging. These berries also have tannins and anthocyanins.. the same compounds which give green tea some of its healthful benefits.
At the end of the day, we eat food, not nutrients. If you want to add a healthy food with many health benefits, you can bypass the exotic fruits, and head right for the grapes. Adding them to a well balanced diet with an abundance of fruits and vegetables can help keep you healthier than ever.

Monday, November 21, 2011

Prostate Health: BHP, Cancer and Laparoscopic Prostatectomy

While no one knows for certain what causes benign prostatic hyperplasia several million men are treated by physicians for it every year. There are no known risk factors and no known thing that can increase or decrease the chances of getting it. BHP is enlargement of the prostate gland, and is believed to be caused by aging. The number of men who suffer from BHP rises steadily along with the average male life expectancy. Symptoms of BHP include weak urine stream and frequent urination. Some men may experience visible swelling of the prostate area. In any case, a doctor should be consulted for the corrected treatment and to rule out more severe diseases, such as cancer.
Cancer of the prostate is a life threatening disease with requires treatment as well as prostate cancer surgery. While prostate cancer can be treated successfully it's treated easiest in it's early stages. As the name suggests, the cancer begins in the prostate glad. Though some studies have pointed to high fat or over production of testosterone intake as potential causes of prostate cancer, there is no definite data to prove these theories. Prostate cancer is the third most terminal cancer to men of any age, and like BHP, the chances of being diagnosed with cancer of the prostate increase with age. Farmers and men who have been exposed to certain chemicals such as cadmium are at a higher risk for developing prostate cancer.

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Creating Health and Curing Cancer Are Not the Same!

Hello and welcome, this is for those people who have discovered that they have cancer and have a determined desire to be cancer free and healthy. This will only appeal to a minority of cancer sufferers, those that want a deeper understanding and are willing to change. This article is related to 'The 5 Step Cancer Healing Process', this is the essential process that one needs to undergo, in order to be healthy and healed from cancer.
The majority of people, who have been shocked to have a diagnosis of cancer given to them, are understandably overwhelmed and distraught at this turn of events. What happens now, is that to escape from the pain of fear and uncertainty that is consuming their life, they seek to take actions, that is, to do something. This "I must do something" is vital to alleviate the depression that would be all consuming if nothing was done. The 'doing something' though has a terrible cost. Let me explain, doing something and taking actions, seems logically enough that you are doing them to beat cancer, survive cancer, get rid of the cancer, fight the cancer etc. You may think that the purpose of taking these actions is as above but usually the actions are taken to alleviate the uncertainty that you were plunged in to.
When you were in a state of shock following your diagnosis, your unconscious mind was flooded with the meanings, perceptions and beliefs that you held about 'Cancer' and I suspect the conclusion you had, is that Cancer kills, Cancer is a Death sentence etc. Now it is widely accepted in the media and socially that there is no cure for cancer, and you would not know, how to cure cancer or heal cancer, so you have a death sentence and no escape. This of course is extremely depressing and fearful, for you do not want to die. Because you do not have the information that would lead you to escape the death sentence, you are in a dilemma.
Stay with me here, for I am describing what goes on at different levels of the brain and though you may disagree with some of my words, I am describing the processes that occur, usually at the unconscious level, which you will be unaware of. The dilemma is that the brain can only process and make conclusions from the information that you have. What certainties is your brain presented with when you were diagnosed, 1. You have Cancer. 2. Cancer kills (etc). It is important to be blunt with you, because at the level of brain processing, it is computer like, totally unemotional, just data processing. So the only conclusion your brain makes and accepts, is that death will occur as a result of the diagnosis. The only variable is time. Do you remember saying to yourself "I am going to die", did you ask the doctor "How much time do I have?" The first conclusion or certainty that you recorded in your brain is that you will die. To accept this emotionally is depressing and the depression that would follow, would lead to an even more premature death than the cancer and far more painful.
So avoiding the overwhelming pain of the depression, is the reason that you take the actions, treatments, cures etc. You may feel that you are trying to survive cancer and though this is what the conscious objective may be, the unconscious will be aware of the original certainties and conclusion and so your body will conform to this. Which means, that the actions will have the affect of alleviating depression, pain and mental anguish, and not returning to health, being cancer free etc.
That is why there is a plethora of cures (they probably all work some of the time, placebos work), everyone (most) is looking for a cure, everyone is looking for certainty, everyone is basing these searches on the original beliefs that cancer kills and is a deadly disease. Cancer is not a deadly disease, cancer is a symptom, cancer is the body's response to all the information that is relevant at the particular time.
What is cancer? is explored in 'The 5 Step Cancer Healing Process'. The human body can be seen as an information transfer machine. By this I mean that information (data) is the governing principle. You are exactly as you are now, purely because you are the sum of all the information that pertains to you. You, your life expression, your state of health and this thing called cancer, is the result or if you like, the perfect harmonization of all that information. There is nothing wrong, there is no malfunction, there is only resonance with information. Stay with me, it may sound weird and metaphysical etc but hang in there.
The totality of You includes the state of health that you are in, this thing called cancer is in perfect harmony with the story of you (which is the totality of the information). The process is always perfect, that is, the result always equals the (totality of) information.
If you want a different result, health for instance, then you need to transform the information. Information arranges itself into patterns. It is the patterns or schemas that create results, as information is neutral/static and patterns have force and movement, they are like instructions, they produce effects. The state of affairs that you label cancer, is a result of patterns, change the patterns and you get a different result, change the patterns to ones that result in health and that is what you will get as a result.
So what information patterns create health, this is of vitally importance, for you cannot cure cancer, you can only create health or create ill health. When you have created health, then naturally you will not have cancer. If you have the purpose of curing your cancer, then: -
  • You will manifest resistance, for you are trying to be in disharmony with the existing information patterns.
  • You believe the cancer is the cause and not a symptom. Therefore the cause remains unchanged and still present.
  • You are divorced and ignorant of your cancer. The cancer cells are your cells responding perfectly to the information pattern. As they are your cells they partly make up the totality that is you.
  • You are attacking a part of yourself when you attack the cancer.
  • You can only create, you are not creating anything when you attempt to cure cancer, you are simply fighting shadows.
You may say 'that when I cure cancer, then I will be healthy' this seems logical but the body's self healing system is the only system that can heal you. This is a totally unconscious process and at this deep level, curing cancer simply does not compute, for how can it cure something that is already operating perfectly, there is nothing to cure. It will simply keep the status quo; there is nothing new to create.
Back to - what information patterns create health;-
  • Most importantly, there has to be a reason for changing patterns, you may say that "I don't want to die", sometimes this can create enough impetus to change but usually it does not create a reason to change patterns and be healthy, because it is only stating the status quo, you also didn't want to die before you knew you had cancer. It doesn't necessarily lead anywhere. Are you happy to have a poor quality of life, ill health and pain etc, as long as you don't die?
So what reason have you to be healthy? Are you surprised by your response or lack of response, to this question? So create a reason, a massive one, one that compels and motivates you, one that forces you to break out of that cocoon that is surrounding you. Discover a reason and a purpose for living and living Well! And then decide to go for it! 100%.
  • Healthy mind, emotions, beliefs, thoughts and attitude. This is a biggie, you have to get rid of your emotional baggage, your self destructive thoughts, emotional stress etc. This is an absolute essential component and where the majority of information needs to be transformed. 'The 5 Step Cancer Healing Process' on my website explores in depth this area.
  • Healthy fresh organic food, the more man has interfered with it, the more carcinogenic information in the form of toxins there is.
  • Unpolluted environment.
  • Minimal stress in daily living.

Saturday, November 19, 2011

Health Benefits Of Blueberries For Fighting Cancer

A report from researchers out of Southern California's City of Hope a leading cancer research center, suggests the health benefits of blueberries in powder form might encourage the shrinkage of one of the more aggressive forms of cancer, triple negative breast cancer. This form of disease includes about 10-20% of all breast cancers and is defined when the cancer is not supported by hormones such as estrogen and progesterone, nor by the presence of higher numbers HER2 receptors. As you might imagine, there's intense interest in coming up with medications that can treat this form of deadly disease.
While anyone can get triple negative breast cancer, it tends to affect younger people (before age 40-50), African American or Hispanic women and those with the BRAC1 mutation.
Most often this type of breast cancer is treated with surgery, chemo and/or radiation. Depending on the cancer stage and grade, your healthcare team will advise you on the best course of treatment. Of course, it's always smart to be your own advocate, and stay informed on your disease and the latest research.
The team searched for fruits that would be able to suppress the growth and migration of cells associated with triple negative breast cancer.
The team fed two groups of mice special diets that had 5% blueberry powder, 10% blueberry powder or a control diet. All the diets had a similar composition of nutrients, and the mice ate and drank about the same amounts, regardless of what diet group they were in.
The human equal of the 5% blueberry powder intake of the mice is about 2 cups of fresh blueberries.
The team saw that the 5% level showed the best results, cutting tumor size from 60% to 75%, suggesting to experts that there's a maximum amount of blueberries you need to consume to help bring down the size of these aggressive cancer tumors and keep this cancer from spreading throughout the body. This amount was not toxic to the mice or had enough calories to bring on weight gain or any other ill effect.
The researchers also conducted molecule studies on the tumors of the mice and saw significant differences between the blueberry eating mice and the control groups. There were genetic patterns known to be tied to inflammatory disease, and a proliferation and spread of the dangerous cancer cells.
No one knows just how blueberries work against this aggressive form of cancer. A likely candidate is the phytochemicals that are known to halt cancer spreading to other organs. The team hopes to evaluate the findings in people. Funding and the proper population to study are still to be decided. There's still no recommendation for how many blueberries women should eat each day.
Even though the study results come from work on lab animals, and therefore can't be directly applied to humans, there is still much value to such work. Mice are, after all, remarkably similar genetically to humans. Add to that the ability to control their environment, and their fairly short life cycles and you can see why these small animals are of such immense value to science.
Experts suggest that despite the health benefits of blueberries, you don't pick one food, and eat it constantly - no matter how good it is for you. The best strategy is to eat a mixture of fruits and veggies to get the optimum benefits to health.

Saturday, October 29, 2011

Canine Dog Health - Cancer

Cancer has become a bigger problem when talking about canine dog health. It was not such a huge issue fifty years ago, though it has become huge now. One of the reasons for this might be that people did not take their dogs to the vet as often as we do now. Another reason might be that the health of our pets was not all that bad fifty years ago.
For the sake of argument let's assume that the last statement is true. What has changed in the last few decades in regards to our pets. They drink the same types of water, they sleep in the same kinds of places, do some of the same things that they have always done, and eat the same food. Wait! They don't eat the same kind of food. Years ago our pets were eating table scraps. We were not going out and buying them a bag of food just for them. Then media, and other sources, convinced us that table scrapes were bad for our dogs so we started buying dog food.
Now, I am not saying that dog food is entirely to blame, but it might be a contributing factor into the worsening conditions of canine dog health recently. Dogs are more likely to get cancer than humans are now days, and I happen to be one person that does not think that this is fair or right. I doubt I am the only one.
For those of you that have had a terrifying visit to the vet and found out that the canine dog health of your pet includes some kind of cancer, I know that you do not think it is fair either. Cancer is something that viciously attacks the patient no matter what species they happen to be. It can be just as devastating to learn that your dog has cancer as it is to learn that someone you love has it. People are funny about their pets and more often feel just as strongly about them as they do the rest of the family; if not more so.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Juicing for Cancer - How to Restore Health and Vitality the Natural Way

A cancer diagnosis is certainly serious, but by no means should it be considered a death sentence. Cancer is usually an indication that the immune system is run down and unable to combat the unregulated cell division of cancerous cells. And, as most people are aware, the immune system needs proper support, both from a nutritional and lifestyle perspective, to function as it should.
Many people today are realizing that there is a better alternative than going through expensive, debilitating chemotherapy, which not only works to kill the cancerous cells, but the rest of your cells as well. This alternative is juicing, and juicing for cancer has successfully cured many people who have stuck with a rigorous juicing regimen while also supporting their immune system through restful sleep, a diet free of processed foods, stress reduction methods, and proper exercise.
Fresh, raw fruits and vegetables contain a plethora of essential nutrients, including vitamins, minerals, enzymes, anti-oxidants, and phytonutrients. These nutrients help to nourish the immune system and have a wide range of benefits even beyond inhibiting cancer cell formation and proliferation. Phytonutrients in particular are an emerging area of research and many compounds have been identified that have profound anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory effects.
Lycopene, for example, is an anti-oxidant found in tomatoes that has beneficial effects on the cardiovascular system in addition to suppressing tumor cell growth and proliferation. The phytonutrients lutein and zeathanin have been shown to fight cataracts and macular degeneration, and a well-known cancer drug called Taxol (also known as paclitaxel) is extracted and purified from the Pacific yew tree. In fact, many of the most common drugs used today are derived from compounds found in nature (although nature's medicine is usually preferable because of the synergy of other nutrients and limited or no side effects).
If you are looking to juicing as a way to cure cancer, it is important to focus your juicing regimen on those fruits and vegetables with the most potent anti-cancer properties to ensure that you attack the disease quickly and get the most bang for your buck. It is also critical, whenever possible, to juice the freshest produce you have access to, and to get it organic whenever possible, as these will have the highest nutrient density (not to mention taste better). If you don't have access to an organic garden, a local farmer's market or CSA program are excellent options for sourcing your produce.
With that said, let's look at three of the most potent groups of anti-cancer fruits and vegetables. You will want to base your juices on these groups for optimal cancer-fighting results. Note that not all of the fruits and veggies in each group are listed; feel free to do some research on your own to find other options.
Cruciferous Vegetables
These vegetables are high in cancer-fighting nutrients like vitamin C and selenium, but more importantly contain a group of compounds called isothiocyanates, which directly block the carcinogenic effects of free radicals and thereby inhibit tumor growth and development. Sulforaphane and diindolylmethane are other notable anti-cancer phytonutrients in cruciferous vegetables.
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Cabbage
Brussels Sprouts
Kale
Collard Greens
Watercress
Bok Choy
Kohlrabi
Turnips
Arugula
Rapini
Beta Carotene
Beta carotene is a reddish-orange pigment found in red, orange, yellow, and deep green vegetables, as well as some fruits. Studies have shown that beta carotene in whole foods (not supplements) reduces the risk of cancer and actively fights cancer.
Carrots
Peppers (especially the red, orange, and yellow variety)
Kale
Spinach
Collard Greens
Romaine Lettuce
Turnips
Yams
Mangoes
Papayas
Flavonoids
Flavonoids are a class of plant pigments, quercetin and catechins being examples, with a variety of important sub-classes. The two most notable are the flavanols and the proanthocyanidins. These compounds inhibit cancer through their powerful free radical scavenging abilities and have also shown beneficial cardiovascular effects.
Apples
Onions (especially red)
Beans
Brussels Sprouts
Beets
Parsley
Coconuts
Citrus fruits
Green Tea
Grapes (purple)
Blueberries
Strawberries
Blackberries (and other dark berries)
Plums
As you can see, there are many fruits and vegetables to choose from when formulating your anti-cancer juicing recipes. It would be ideal to combine produce from each class together in your juice recipes in order to reap the full spectrum of anti-cancer benefits, but not necessarily on a daily basis. You may have also noted that some of the vegetables fall in multiple categories!