Partial extract from WALKING IN DIVINE HEALTH by Don Colbert, M.D.
As a medical doctor I am disheartened to see the incidence of cancer increasing in our society. Current statistics indicate that one out of every three people will develop some form of cancer in his or her lifetime. I believe that between 80 and 90 percent of cancers can be prevented because they are caused by environmental, dietary or nutritional factors.
LUNG CANCER
We don’t stop to realize it, but when someone lights up a cigarette, more than two thousand chemicals are released in that smoke. Even more alarming is the fact that most hazardous chemicals come from the lighted end – which is the source of secondhand smoke (the passive smoke we all inhale). You may never have smoked in your life, but you are inhaling danger when you are near someone who is smoking. Whether in restaurants, at the ball park or in the lobby of a concert hall, you are consuming secondhand toxins.
COLON CANCER
Why do we have so much cancer of the colon in our society? It is because the foods we eat contain toxins that stay in our gastrointestinal tracts for days simply because we don’t eat enough fiber in our foods. Because of the lack of sufficient fiber to help with elimination, toxins remain in our gastrointestinal tracts and begin to form carcinogens. Eventually these carcinogens begin to change the cells of the colon. In my medical practice I diagnose abnormal polyps, or precancerous growths, regularly.
Colon cancer is at epidemic proportions in our country because of two reasons:
· The
percentage of pesticides and toxins we are taking into our bodies
· The low
fiber content of the foods we eat
The solution lies in eating fruits and vegetables
that contain enough fiber to help bind toxins and eliminate them from the
colon. BREAST CANCER
The most common type of cancer in women is breast cancer. According to current statistics, one in eight women will develop breast cancer. The major contributing factors are the toxins and pesticides that we take into our bodies. These substances are stored in the fatty tissues of animals. Women ingest these toxins through the meat and food they eat, and the toxins are then stored in the fattiest portion of a woman’s body: the breast.
Breast cancer is linked to high levels of consumption of animal fats and whole milk products. If we drink milk, it should not be whole milk but skim milk or milk products with greatly reduced fat content. We should also select cheeses made with skim milk instead of those produced with whole milk.
I tell my patients not to eat butter or ice cream because these foods contain the hormone estrogen from cows. Dairy cows are injected with DES, which is a form of estrogen. Small amounts of this hormone, when taken into the body, can be found in women’s breasts. Whole milk products also contain fat and cholesterol, which provide the raw materials for making additional estrogen. Your body will make more estrogen using the actual fat that contains pesticides and other carcinogens. This is how toxins find their home in the fatty tissues in the breast.
Prostate cancer is occurring in epidemic proportions as is breast cancer, and for the same reasons. The prostate is the fatty gland, and toxins are stored in fatty tissues.
I believe in medicine, but I also believe in prayer. Before you begin to eat your food, pause for a moment, not only to thank God for it, but to pray over it in faith. We must act in faith every time we eat because of all the pesticides and carcinogens to which we are exposed on a daily basis.
Antioxidants
An antioxidant is a vitamin, a mineral, an enzyme, a phytonutrient (a plant nutrient) or a food. Antioxidants have the ability to bind free radicals and to neutralize them.
VITAMIN C
Linus Pauling, a Nobel Prize winner, was recognized as one of the greatest researchers ever. He recommends between 1 to 10 grams (1,000 to 10,000 milligrams) of vitamin C every day. The recommended daily allowance of vitamin C is only 60 milligrams a day. Pauling lived until his mid-nineties, much longer than the average life span of a doctor. He credited his
longevity to the high doses of vitamin C.
I take 1,000 milligrams of vitamin C three times a day. If you’re in a period of stress or illness, you could take even more – perhaps one and a half times that amount. Vitamin C is critically important; you may want to begin by taking 2,000 milligrams (2 grams) a day, taken in two 1,000-milligram doses.
VITAMIN A
Foods that are considered high sources of vitamin A include liver, kidneys, butter and whole milk. As you can imagine, I would not recommend eating liver or kidney since these organs are filters where toxins are stored. And since we should avoid eating butter and drinking whole milk, we should forget about getting vitamin A from our foods. Instead we should get it from beta carotene, which is similar but not the same thing.
Beta carotene is pro-vitamin A, and your body can make all the vitamin A it needs from beta carotene without becoming toxic.
Vitamin A, beta carotene, vitamin E and vitamin C are the major antioxidant vitamins. They are important and you need to get those that are natural and have a nice gelatin coating or a coating that dissolves easily. You can test a vitamin’s coating by seeing how quickly it dissolves in vinegar.
MINERALS
Some potent antioxidants are found in minerals. Three in particular are outstanding: zinc, copper and manganese. They form a very potent antioxidant called SOD, or superoxide dismutase. This enzyme is a very powerful anti-oxidant that actually neutralizes free radicals and prevents damage to our cell membranes.
The best way to receive these elements is through a process that is called chelated minerals. You can get zinc and copper through nuts and legumes such as beans and peas. Manganese is found in pecans, Brazil nuts, almonds and barley.
SELENIUM and glutathione make up another very important antioxidant called glutathione peroxidase. Selenium is a mineral that is found in meats and grains (depending on the soil content). It is also found in Brazil nuts, broccoli, garlic and onions.
GLUTATIONE is made from cysteine, the amino
acid that comes from eating protein. It protects
cell membranes.
COENZYME Q-10 is another very potent anti-oxidant. You find it in fish such as mackerel, Pacific salmon and sardines. Coenzyme Q-10 is very good for your immune system. It also scavenges free radicals and strengthens your cell membranes.
SUPER ANTIOXIDANTS will help you walk in health. One in particular is twenty times more powerful than vitamin C and fifty times more powerful than vitamin E. It is grape seed extract. Red grapes from colder climates, such as France and Canada, usually have a higher con-centration of resveratrol. Resveratrol is the main phytonutrient in red wine, which protects from both heart disease and cancer.
Contained within the seed of a grape is a powerful antioxidant called a flavonoid. Pine bark extract that comes from the European coastal pine trees is also an excellent antioxidant.
PHYTONUTRIENTS (plant nutrients that are chemical extracts taken from plants) contain very effective antioxidants. They also contain enzyme simulators and have hormone inhibitors. Researchers are now using these substances to treat cancer patients.
THE PROTEASE INHIBITOR Found in a plant’s reproductive parts-especially in the soybean-is a substance called the protease inhibitor. This is actually the seed’s defense against destruction. This tiny part of the soybean can block both the initiation and the promotion of certain cancers. Some research has shown cells that have been reprogrammed back to their original precancerous state.
FLAVONOIDS There are many classes of flavonoids. These potent anticancer agents are found in green tea, soybeans, celery and cruciferous vegetables including cabbage, Brussels sprouts and broccoli.
POLYPHENOLS is a phytochemical. It is found in garlic, soybeans, green tea, cruciferous vegetables and umbelliferous vegetables such as carrots. Polyphenols are antioxidants that act to prohibit both the initiation and promotion of cancer-they either block it or they slow it down. Polyphenols can be found in the ellagic acid in strawberries and grapes.
SULFIDES are found in garlic and in cruciferous vegetables (such as cabbage and broccoli); they stimulate the repair of DNA. Encourage people with cancer to begin juicing these vegetables.
TERPENE is another important antioxidant. It is found in garlic, cruciferous vegetables and umbelliferous vegetables. This also helps to block the initiation and growth of cancer.
PHYTOESTROGEN, found in soy products, inhibits breast cancer by blocking the effects of estrogen. Women who have a family history of breast cancer should take this nutrient.
Two additional helpful anticancer agents are indoles and lycopenes. Indoles are plant sugars found in cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts and radishes. They stimulate the protec-tive enzymes that help to reduce the initiation of cancer. Lycopene is found in tomatoes and is a strong anticancer chemical.
Incredible Vegetables and Fruits
SOYBEANS have been found to be one of the foods most effective in protecting us from cancer. Soybeans are used in the making of tofu, soy sauce, soy flour and soy milk. Nutritionists say that one cup of soybeans is equivalent to one regular tablet of Premarin, which is a form of estrogen. This is important because it can help prevent breast cancer.
Soybeans also have isoflavones, phyto-estrogen and the protease inhibitors. Best of all, soy products help reduce the risk of lung, colon and breast cancer.
CRUCIFEROUS VEGETABLES are extremely important in stimulating the body to detoxify and eliminate cancer-causing chemicals. Cruciferous vegetables include cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, collard and mustard greens, turnip greens and radishes.
Cabbage in particular is one of the most important nutrient foods that you can eat. It has potent anticancer properties that help the body protect against the damage of free radicals. It also has polyphenols that act as garbage collectors, ridding the body of carcinogens. In addition, it has indoles, which stimulate protective enzymes that help protect us from cancer. The more cabbage we eat, the lower our risk of breast and colon cancer.
Coleslaw made with fat-free mayonnaise is a great addition to your daily diet. Eat it every day
if possible.
GREEN TEA is a drink that decreases the risk of cancer and is common in the Orient. The tea leaves are not heated but are actually steamed, rolled and crushed. The antioxidant activity of green tea is two hundred times more potent than that of vitamin E and five hundred times more potent than vitamin C. To help prevent cancer, one should drink two to three cups of green tea each day.
GARLIC has been used in Egypt for more than five thousand years and in China for more than three thousand years. Garlic has antifungal, antiviral and antibacterial properties. I take garlic every day in an odorless form.
PARSLEY has an important anticancer phytonutrient. This nutrient also inhibits the cancer-causing properties of fried foods.
TOMATOES contain three phytonutrients that help prevent the formation of carcinogens. Eat tomatoes regularly, sliced, in salads or as a juice.
STRAWBERRIES AND GRAPES contain an important acid-ellagic acid-that neutralizes cancer and the toxins that cause cancer. They also protect against damage to our chromosomes.
TANGERINES are filled with a strong phyto-nutrient called tangeretin. It inhibits the invasive-ness of cancer.
YOGURT contains lactobacillus, acidophilus and bifidus bacteria-good bacteria that help combat carcinogens in our gastrointestinal tracts. These good bacteria help reduce the production of cancer-causing chemicals. Eat a small container of yogurt every day (not the high sugar, high-fat varieties) to help prevent cancer.
ENZYMES are critical to health and essential in the digestion and assimilation of food. They protect our cells and are found in raw foods, but not in processed or most fast foods.
Many people who don’t eat fresh fruits and vegetables regularly are deficient in enzymes. If you cook food at a temperature of over 118 degrees Fahrenheit, you destroy essential enzymes that manufacture strong cells we need to combat diseases and illness.
We are born with a limited ability to make enzymes, and we must either get them from the food we eat or from a supplement. The best advice is to eat raw foods-not cooked or steamed. Food in its fresh, raw state has all its enzymes; those enzymes help us to digest the raw foods and release the nutrients in them that our bodies need.
TO SUM IT UP
To decrease your risk of cancer:
· Maintain
your ideal body weight
· Decrease
your fat intake
· Switch
from eating fatty foods to lean meats such as chicken or turkey
· Switch
from using whole milk, whole milk cheeses, butter, cream and ice cream to
low-fat skim milk and skim milk cheeses
· Do not eat
margarine. It contains trans-fatty acids that can contribute to heart disease
· Avoid
butter. It is full of fat and has unwanted chemicals. Use a substitute such as
Butter Buds
· Increase
your fiber intake. Take in 25 to 30 grams of fiber a day
· If you
smoke, stop! You are killing yourself; worse yet, you’re killing your loved
ones
· Do not
drink alcohol. It is also associated with free radical damage and with cancer.
Take grape seed extract instead or drink nonalcoholic red wine
· Remember
the foods that contain nitrites and avoid them, such as luncheon meats (bologna
and salami) and bacon
· Avoid
smoked meats, salt-cured meats and other high-pesticide foods
· Take
antioxidants such as vitamin C, vitamin E and beta carotene
· Take
minerals including selenium, zinc, copper and manganese
· It’s best
to get minerals in chelated form. Most are found in a good multivitamin
· Do not
forget about coenzyme Q-10
· Take an
enzyme supplement before eating processed foods or overcooked vegetables in
which the enzymes have been depleted
· Eat plenty
of fresh fruits and vegetable
· If you
have cancer or a strong family history of cancer, get phytonutrients that are
found in carrots, broccoli and cabbage
· Start
eating soybeans and tofu and drinking green tea
· Eat plenty
of cruciferous vegetables
If you do these simple things and exercise
regularly, you will reduce your risk of cancer significantly and be well on
your way to walking in divine health.THE BASICS
1.
Reduce the intake of high-starch foods, including bread, crackers, bagels,
pretzels, corn, popcorn,
potatoes, sweet potatoes, potato chips, pasta,
rice, beans and bananas by one half to three-fourths. Better yet, eliminate
them all together
2.
Avoid all simple sugar foods such as candies, cookies, cakes, pies and donuts.
If you must have sugar, use Sweet Balance, a sweetener made from kiwi fruit.
Choose fruit instead of fruit juices
3.
Increase your intake of nonstarchy vegetables such as spinach, lettuce,
cabbage, broccoli, asparagus, green beans and cauliflower
4.
Choose healthy meats such as turkey breast, chicken breast, fish, free-range
beef and low-fat cottage cheese. Select healthy fats such as nuts, seeds,
flaxseed oil, extra virgin oil or small amounts of organic butter. Use extra
virgin olive oil and vinegar as a salad dressing. Choose the healthy fats we
listed instead of polyunsaturated, saturated and hydrogenated fats
5.
Eat three meals a day consisting of fruit, nonstarchy vegetables, lean meat and
good fat. You should also have a healthy midmorning, midafternoon and evening
snack.
By following these guidelines I believe you will
experience increased energy and improved health.THE FINAL WORD
It is important to remember that the nutrients in the foods we eat will determine our health and the quality of our life. Make sure that the foods you consume are nutritionally sound and that you follow God’s laws for divine health.
As a physician I have been privileged to be present at many miracle crusades. Walking through the crowds, I’ve seen too many people whose bodies are broken down. These people are often overweight, many have been stricken with cancer, they suffer with arthritis pain in their knees, their backs are severely bowed with osteoporosis and the arteries leading to their hearts are full of plague. It is suffering people like these who often come seeking a healing.
Many of these same people are touched by God miraculously, and they leave rejoicing at what the Lord has done for them. Yet scores of these sincere individuals return to their homes and go right back to their old habits-eating the same harmful foods. It is not really surprising that some of them develop the same diseases and conditions all over again. Some come back and say, “What’s the matter? Why did God put this disease back on me?”
Now that you have read what I feel the Lord has inspired me to write, the choice is yours. I pray that you will choose a healthy lifestyle that will bring glory to God. I pray that like Moses, Joshua and Caleb, you will walk in divine health, and that even in your old age you will continue to be filled with energy, health and vigor.
