The Secret Seven
Seven evidence based metabolic natural interventions to reduce your cancer risk.
If I said to you that there were three very simple and inexpensive things that you could do to reduce your cancer risk by 60%, would you be interested?
There are some very simple, non prescription interventions that we can benefit from that can reduce risk of cancer by as much as 60%. For example, Bischoff-Ferrari et al, in their 2022 paper, which was a Randomised Controlled Trial (RCT), found that Vitamin D, Omega 3 fatty acid and a simple home exercise plan showed a statistically significant 61% reduction in cancer risk when these three steps were taken together. Also significant was the fact that the study participants were aged 70+ years, where the risks of cancer are significantly increased.
A meta review of over 1200 peer reviewed studies concluded that the following are the most useful non pharmaceutical interventions in reducing cancer risk.
- A low carbohydrate, high fat diet, ketogenic plus time restricted eating. This is because glucose is what drives the tumour cell, as discovered by Professor Warburg almost 100 years ago. Ketones inhibit the growth of cancer cells, whereas insulin encourages tumour growth. A good source book to explain this is ‘Cancer as a metabolic disease’ by Thomas Seyfried published in 2012.
2. Green Tea catechins – 500-1000 mg daily.
Green tea (Camellia sinesis) is widely known for its anticancer and anti-inflammatory properties the main antioxidant agents being catechins. The best source of these compounds is unfermented green tea. Catechins exhibit the strong property of neutralizing reactive oxygen and nitrogen species. Notably, green tea catechins are widely described to be efficient in the prevention of lung cancer, breast cancer, esophageal cancer, stomach cancer, liver cancer and prostate cancer.
3. Vitamin D3 – 5,000 IU per day according to blood D levels.
Vitamin D stops cancer cell growth and encourages apoptosis (cell death) of tumor cells; other chemoprotective mechanisms include enhancing DNA repair, antioxidant protection, and immunomodulation. In addition, other cell targets such as the stromal cells, endothelial cells, and cells of the immune system may be regulated by 1,25 dihydroxyvitamin D and contribute to vitamin D mediated cancer prevention.
4. Curcumin – 600mg twice daily
Numerous studies have demonstrated that curcumin possesses anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and anticancerous properties. Curcumin helps to prevent cancer formation, migration, and invasion.
5. Omega 3 Fatty Acid 2-4g daily
Omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), can exert anti-neoplastic activity by inducing apoptotic cell death in human cancer cells either alone or in combination with conventional therapies. Indeed, n-3 PUFAs potentially increase the sensitivity of tumor cells to conventional therapies, possibly improving their efficacy especially against cancers resistant to treatment. Moreover, in contrast to traditional therapies, n-3 PUFAs appear to cause selective cytotoxicity towards cancer cells with little or no toxicity on normal cells.
6. Berberine – 500-600 mg bi daily
Berberine has been extensively studied in vivo and vitro experiments, and inhibits cell proliferation by regulating cell cycle and cell autophagy (self-digestion by a cell through the action of enzymes originating within the cell), and promoting cell apoptosis (programmed cancer cell death). Berberine also inhibits cell invasion and metastasis. In addition, berberine inhibits cell proliferation by interacting with micro RNAs and suppressing telomerase activity. Berberine exerts its anti-inflammation and antioxidant properties, and also regulates the tumor micro environment.
7. Exercise – walking, high intensity interval training, cycling etc… plus stress reduction.