from The Daily Telegraph
More evidence that fruit and vegetables can protect you from and even perhaps cure cancer. This study reveals evidence of anti-oxidents killing up to 20% of cancer cells. Their response - goody we can make a new drug by extracting the purple out of these foods.
*sigh* what about the vitamin C ?, the minerals such as selenium? the fibre? the essential fats in the seeds? - if they just got people to eat more fruit and vegetables in the first place we wouldn't be in this mess! There are over 600 different anthocyanins found in nature. It's simple - no need for expensive cancer fighting drugs JUST EAT MORE FRUIT AND VEGETABLES!
The Telegraph reports......In studies on human colon cancer cells grown in laboratory dishes, the researchers tested the anti-cancer effects of anthocyanin-rich extracts from fruits and vegetables with deep colours.
Anthocyanin pigments from radishes and black carrots slowed the growth of cancer cells from 50 to 80 per cent.
Pigments from purple corn and chokeberries (almost black berries from shurbs native to North America) not only stopped the growth of cancer cells, but also killed roughly 20 per cent of the cancer cells while having little effect on healthy cells.
Dr Giusti, who presented her findings added: "There are more than 600 different anthocyanins found in nature.
"While we know that the concentration of anthocyanins in the gastro-intestinal tract is ultimately affected by their chemical structures, we're just beginning to scratch the surface of understanding how the body absorbs and uses these different structures."
Also reported in The Guardian, The Daily Mail, Scotsman, BBC
Low UK Cancer Survival Rates
Survival rates for people diagnosed with breast cancer in 2000-02 were 77.8% in England, 77.3% in Scotland and 78.4% in Wales. In Iceland women in the same period had a 93.4% survival rate and in Sweden 86.3%. The Lancet Oncology says: "Overall, survival for all cancers combined in the UK as a whole is not only below the European average, it is also noticeably similar to some eastern European countries that spend less than one third of the UK's per capita healthcare budget."