Uncensored

My father was just diagnosed with stage one lung cancer. When I got this terrible news, my parents were driving out of the cancer centre in Sudbury, Ontario. My family and friends were sympathetic, of course, but it still didn’t remove the fear that flooded my soul. Why my dad? It’s always been someone else affected by serious diseases, but now it was my turn.

But rather than hide in sadness and give in to the fear of losing my dad, I decided to stand up, put the gloves on, and help my mom fight off his cancer! But really, what could I do to fight such an opponent? I’m not a cancer doctor. I can’t read a CAT scan or PET scan or come up with a chemotherapy treatment! But I do have my INSIDERS. In fact, there’s nobody in the bodybuilding and fitness industry who has better access to the brightest minds in nutrition than I do. Being the publisher of MUSCLE INSIDER has allowed me to travel the world making a living in bodybuilding, but now it could save my dad’s life.

So I reached out to our team of the best nutrition experts in the industry and asked them to forward me any nutrition or supplement research that could help my dad’s battle. I knew from my nutrition studies at Ryerson University that what you eat has a huge ability to help prevent new cancers from forming. I thought I would devote this column to giving you the information I learned in case you or someone you know is faced with the same battle.

TIP ONE
UNDERSTANDING CANCER
FACT:  Cancer is not a single disease. It’s a group of diseases. In fact, there are more than 100 different types of cancer, and they’re classified according to what kind of cell is involved. What all cancers have in common is out-of-control cell growth, which can spread to various parts of the body and ultimately become life-threatening if left untreated.

TIP TWO
CAUSES
FACT:  The longer you live, the more potential there is for cells in your body to mutate and become cancerous. It’s part of aging. But many people are genetically predisposed to certain cancers, which we can’t control. Some cells can become cancerous because of exposure to radiation, toxins, or poor lifestyle habits such as smoking or drinking excessive alcohol.

TIP THREE
IMMUNE SYSTEM
FACT: Your immune system (if it’s healthy) often destroys cancer cells before they become dangerous. In fact, according to research at the Stanford University School of Medicine, many cancer cells carry the seeds of their own destruction, namely, a protein on the cell surface that signals circulating immune cells to engulf and destroy them. So the stronger your immune system is, the lower your risk will be for developing certain kinds of cancer. In fact, lifestyle can often trump genetics when it comes to fighting off the cancer process.

TIP FOUR
NUTRITION
FACT: Nutrition is an important element in the treatment of different types of cancer, but it’s most effective as a preventive measure. Eating fatty processed foods can increase your risk of cancer, but a diet full of fibrous vegetables and fruit helps improve your health and your immune system. Minimize your intake of trans fats and processed or cured meats, and try to eat organic if you can afford it. Try cooking food in water rather than oil whenever possible. Heating any oil changes its chemical structure and causes potentially toxic by-products to be formed, which can diminish health.

TIP FIVE
AVOID ALCOHOL
FACT: As we all know, there’s some research that suggests that drinking one glass of red wine each day may help with heart disease. But I’ve yet to read a single study that says alcohol improves cancer survival rates. In fact, alcohol is seen as a risk factor for getting cancer. But if you do drink, do not drink to the point of being intoxicated as this will increase liver toxicity and compromise immunity.

TIP SIX
SUPPLEMENTS
FACT: Supplements help make up for any lack of nutritional quality in the food we eat. Moderate intake of a variety of supplements can provide a kind of insurance to guarantee your immune system has all the ammunition it needs to battle against diseases such as cancer.

TIP SEVEN
AVOID SUGAR
FACT: The theory behind this is that cancer cells thrive on glucose as a fuel source over non-cancer cells but cannot fuel themselves with ketones as healthy cells can. In fact, the positron emission tomography (PET) scan my father underwent to detect his cancer involved drinking a mixture of glucose and a radioactive tracer. When he drank the high-sugar cocktail, it was sucked almost exclusively by the cancer cells! This allowed the PET scan to be done, creating a three-dimensional digital picture of the cancerous cells eating up the sugar. This allowed doctors to see exactly where his cancer was. Cancer cells supposedly can’t utilize ketones to fuel themselves, but non-cancer cells can. So the idea is that if you fuel your body with ketones instead of glucose, cancer cells (which cannot survive on ketones) will be starved off and will die. It’s a wonderful idea for sure, but I couldn’t find conclusive research to prove this theory to be true. Because any dietary protein can be converted into glucose, the cancer cells can obtain glucose from protein via gluconeogenesis. However, I was intrigued to read more in this area when I found out that world-renowned sport nutrition and strength expert Dr. Fred Hatfield put his cancer into remission using the ketogenic diet. How do you get your body to run off ketones? Dramatically reduce your carb intake (below 20 grams per day).

TIP EIGHT
MULTIVITAMINS
FACT: Without extensive testing and blood work, it’s difficult to know in what ways your diet may be nutritionally deficient. A multivitamin usually supplies moderate and safe amounts of a wide range of vitamins, and in some cases, minerals. It’s quick and easy to take a multivitamin supplement once a day and then go about your daily life.

TIP NINE
VITAMIN D
FACT: Vitamin D deficiency is fairly common, especially in colder Canadian climates where there’s less exposure to sunshine, which stimulates the body to synthesize this substance. However, there’s a great deal of evidence that you can reduce your risk of breast, prostate, colon, lung, pancreatic, and ovarian cancers by at least 50 percent by increasing your levels of vitamin D. Try for 2,000 to 5,000 IU daily.

TIP TEN
LYCOPENE
FACT: Research indicates that lycopene can reduce the risk of prostate cancer, a disease that is becoming more prevalent as the population ages. Lycopene is found in large amounts in cooked tomato sauces and can be taken in supplement form. Try for 5 to 10 milligrams of lycopene daily.

TIP ELEVEN
ANTIOXIDANTS
FACT: Over time, your body produces some dangerous molecules called free radicals, which are highly reactive and therefore damaging to other substances. But other substances called antioxidants counteract this process. With more antioxidants in your system, which can be obtained from supplements, there is evidence you can reduce your risk of breast, prostate, colon, lung, pancreatic, and ovarian cancers by at least 50 percent. Foods rich in antioxidants include fruits, berries, and green vegetables (vitamin C); vegetable oils such as olive, soybean, corn, cottonseed, and safflower, as well as nuts and nut butters, seeds, and whole grains (vitamin E); brazil nuts, brewer’s yeast, chicken, eggs, dairy products, garlic, molasses, onions, salmon, seafood, tuna, wheat germ, and dark orange, red, yellow, and green fruits and vegetables such as broccoli, kale, spinach, and carrots (beta-carotene).

TIP TWELVE
CURCUMIN
FACT:  Curcumin is found in the popular Indian spice turmeric, an anti-inflammatory, which can be of benefit in preventing the development of cancer. Try for 300 to 750 milligrams daily of standardized curcuminoids.

TIP THIRTEEN
GREEN TEA
FACT: Green tea contains epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), a potent antioxidant that protects against colorectal, prostate, and breast cancer, according to several published studies. You’ll benefit from drinking a few cups of fresh, high-quality green tea daily, but green tea supplements provide a more consistent and higher amount of EGCG. Try for 500 milligrams of EGCG daily.