Anti-cancer Foods
Ginger
The powerful healing effects of ginger have been well documented. It's a
proven remedy for upset stomach. Reams of studies show that it inhibits
inflammation. And there is substantial evidence that it fights cancer
too.
For instance, a recent University of Michigan study showed that when
ginger was added to ovarian cancer cells in the laboratory, it caused
the cancer cells to self-destruct (a process known as "apoptosis"). In a
separate study at the University of Minnesota , researchers injected
colon cancer cells into mice that were bred to have no immune system.
Half of these mice were routinely fed gingerol, the main active
component in ginger. The researchers found that the mice that were fed
gingerol lived longer, their tumors were smaller, and the cancer did not
spread as widely as in the control group.
With all these health benefits, you should be using ginger as often as
you can. The best way I've found to get a healthy serving of ginger is
to juice it. (The brand of juicer I use is an Omega.) Two or three days
a week, I juice an apple or two, some carrots, spinach, broccoli,
cabbage, and a big piece of ginger root.
The ginger gives the drink a great flavor and a powerful anti-cancer
kick.
Healing and cleansing with barley
High in fibre, barley is also a kidney cleanser. Better yet, regular
intake of it helps prevent heart disease. BARLEY water was always a
regular drink when we were still living at home. Whenever we had to go
for a medical exam that included a urine test, my mum would make us
drink barley water a day before it to make sure we got a positive
result!
Barley is good for your intestinal health too. Try to eat the barley
grains you find in your drink or sweet broth with fu chook (beancurd
skin) and ginkgo nuts.
It's high in fibre which feeds the friendly bacteria in the colon and
helps speed up the transit of fecal matter in it. In this way it helps
prevent haemorrhoids and colon cancer.
The propionic acid and beta glucan from barley's insoluble fibre also
help lower cholesterol and prevent the formation of gallstones.
Eating barley regularly is a preventive step against heart disease as,
besides the fibre content, it is also high in niacin, a B vitamin good
for lowering cholesterol.
Diabetics should eat more barley as the fibre will prevent blood sugar
levels from rising too high. It also provides r elie f from constipation
or diarrhoea for those suffering from Irritable Bowel Syndrome.
Barley is rich in selenium which prevents cancer and r elie ves symptoms
of asthma and arthritis. It is a good source of manganese, copper and
phosphorous.
Malt sugar comes from sprouted barley which, when fermented, is an
ingredient in beer and other alcoholic beverages.
Barley, whose Latin name is " hordeum vulgare" , has been cultivated for
more than 10,000 years.
Since ancient times, barley has been used for healing purposes and has
been known to the Chinese, Egyptians, Greeks and Romans. Athletes in
Greece and Rome in those days were known to eat barley bread to give
them strength.
Besides the usual things we do with barley, I enjoy having it in a
western soup. The larger pearl barley is used and I love the sticky bite
By Eric Emmanuel
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