Those who are doing research into nutrition, generally look
at a narrow spectrum of it. As I’ve said
before, the body doesn’t work on a narrow spectrum, but on a network of
inter-related nutrients and processes with much connectivity, positive and negative
feedback loops, and complexity that is mind boggling. So, when a researcher looks at one nutrient,
and draws conclusions, I’d like you to remember the complexity that lies behind
the single nutrient studied.
I am going to list three nutrients below for which there is
excellent research indicating they play a role in cancer prevention (and by
implication in cancer survivability). Next
time I’ll talk about some other things that research says play a role in
staying clear of cancer. But…the conclusion
I draw from this is that cancer and disease prevention is multidimensional and
isolating one thing is only part of the picture. Also, over and over as I’m digging into this
kind of information, these minerals first, are identified as public health concerns
for their universal deficiencies in large populations. Statistically, you’re probably low in these
things—maybe dangerously low—because they’re hard to get adequately in diet.
1. Selenium. Areas of low selenium content in the soil
have higher rates of cancer than areas of high content. My first experience with this mineral was in
livestock health. In low selenium areas
large animals must get selenium injections or various problems occur—especially
in reproductive health. It is always
combined with Vitamin E. Areas low in
selenium are higher in cancer. No
question. Particularly cancers of lung,
esophagus, bladder, breast, colon, rectum, pancreas, ovary and cervix. Its exact role or the degree to which it is
preventative might still be under discussion.
But selenium’s role in general is well established as being critical for
cancer prevention. But it’s also
implicated in many other disease processes as well.
Here’s a list of conditions connected to selenium
deficiency:
PCOS
A type of
heart disease (white muscle in animals)
Tuberculosis
HIV
Diabetes
Reproductive problems such as low
sperm quality
Kidney Disease
Verbal memory and age-related
mental decline
Fibrocystic breast disease
Hypothyroidism
Look at the map of selenium deficient (or selenium rich)
soils in the US here:
And remember that where your food comes from might not be
local.
How much selenium do you need? RDA for adults is 400 mcg. Depending on how deficient you are, it must
be stored in all the places it’s missing so you might need much more. The types of cancers (and diseases) that show
up in selenium deficient places are perhaps indicative of the organs in which
selenium is most stored.
Not long ago I was diagnosed with fibrocystic breast disease
and for several months was take 3 times that amount. The cysts disappeared within 6 months and I
now take 800 mcg daily. I live in a
selenium deficient area and eat locally.
Also in that same time frame, I had a dairy goat with cystic ovaries
that has resolved with more frequent selenium injections. Just reporting my own experiments, not making
recommendations.
2. Iodine. Your thyroid gland is perhaps the major player in the whole
orchestration of your immune system. The immune system protects
you against cancer (and many other diseases).
The active form of thyroid hormone that does most of the
work in your body is named tri-iodo-thyronine (hyphens are mine), so named because it contains
three iodine molecules. If iodine is in
short supply, that hormone cannot be produced and the immune system is
compromised. And since your thyroid
gland is something of a master controller for so many other systems, there are
many other effects of low iodine (low thyroid) too. (See previous post on Thyroid).
Some researchers indicate that iodine deficiency also
increases the risk of other cancers such as prostate, endometrial, and ovarian
cancer. In other words, any tissue that
stores iodine is ripe for disease if iodine is in short supply. So first, iodine is implicated in both breast
and thyroid cancers. But there is also a
link between
iodine deficiency and gastric cancer going back to 1924.
What
else? Low iodine is correlated with many other
health problems:
Developmental mental retardation
All reproductive problems (see above
for selenium)
Miscarriages
Heart arrhythmias
Eye disease
Diabetes
Heart disease
Stroke
Fungal skin disease
Too high or too low thyroid
Where do we get iodine?
Sea food and sea vegetables are the best sources but here are
others. If you are low, adding iodine
rich foods will probably not be enough—and public health officials are decrying
widespread deficiency. It’s almost nonexistent
in soil so it’s difficult to get enough.
To add insult to injury, exposure to other halides like chloride, bromine
and fluoride may be out-competing what little iodine there is.
How much iodine do you need?
If we compare the lower rates of cancers in Japan with their 60,000 micrograms per day, it’s clear we have a long way to go
before reaching too much. BTW that
translates to 60 mg. While treating for
both fibrocystic problems and upping my iodine for a sluggish thyroid (carpal
tunnel is a symptom of either low iodine or low thyroid or both) I was taking
about 30 mg every other day. On reading
about these levels in the Japanese diet, I doubled my iodine supplement and
within days noticed a big improvement in carpel tunnel symptoms.
3. Magnesium. I’m just starting my look at magnesium so
this section will be a little less detailed.
But the information is pretty clear that magnesium deficiency and cancer
development go hand in hand.
It’s the second most common element in the human body and
involved in 300-350 enzyme reactions in your body. They are involved in the metabolism of carbohydrate, amino acids, nucleic
acids, protein, and ion transport. Magnesium is involved in the cell’s energy
production in the mitochondria (the power plant in each cell). Magnesium actively pumps calcium ions OUT of
the cell, but if magnesium is low relative to calcium, those calcium ions build
up in the cell, calcifying at the cell membrane. A calcified cell membrane makes a sick cell,
prone to other changes and death.
Cancer prevalence
and low Mg content of water and of soil was reported from worldwide early
studies, starting from the earliest 20th century. Fergusson, Madden, Day, Dolbey, as well as
the eminent English cancer specialist, Roger Williams,
and Engel Bey wrote in 1908. "From these data it
appears that the reputation of Egypt for comparative immunity from cancer is
well founded." In 1931, the
following:
Dr. P. Schrumpf-Pierron presented a paper entitled "On the Cause
Of the Rarity of Cancer in Egypt," concluding that ”which characterizes
the diet of the Rural Egyptian is its richness in salts of magnesium. They
consume in food, in the water, and in the crude salt used from 2.5 to 3 grams
of magnesium per day, against 4 to 5 grams of potash (potassium). That magnesium intake is about ten times that
of Europeans and Americans.
Dr. Mildred Seelig wrote Magnesium In
Oncogenesis And In Anti-Cancer Treatment: Interaction With Minerals And
Vitamins, published in 1993. She
covered much information that should have triggered research but hasn’t. (Follow the money). But clearly, according to many
epidemiological studies, cancer rates are higher in areas of soft water (fewer
minerals that make water ‘hard’) and low
soil magnesium. Especially sensitive to
magnesium deficiency are colorectal and pancreatic cancers. adeno- and squamous cell carcinomas in the
gastrointestinal tract, respiratory system, and leukemias.
Magnesium deficiency
has been linked to the following health conditions:
migraine headaches
arthritis
fatigue and lethargy
digestive problems
muscle cramps
premenstrual cramping
hypertension
metabolic syndrome
type 2 diabetes
osteoporosis
heart disease
strokes
The National Institutes of Health recommend daily consumption
of 420 milligrams for men and 320 milligrams for adult woman, with slightly
more for pregnant women. Dr. Dean, author of “The Magnesium Miracle”
goes further. She says that 700 milligrams of elemental magnesium daily, is
important for curing and preventing a host of problems (see list above). That level is nearly impossible to get
through diet alone — through leafy green vegetables, squash, broccoli,
legumes, seeds, nuts, and some meats and saltwater fish — because of soil
that is low or depleted of magnesium. Remember the Egyptians at 2 ½ to 3 grams.
Many researchers have
tested minerals in vegetables and fruits, finding them far lower than tests of
a few decades earlier. If you are eating
commercially grown vegetables and fruits, remember that they are boosted with
nitrogen but not magnesium and trace minerals.
If you have noticed produce being tasteless in recent years, that’s
why.
The World
Health Organization also said that up to 80 percent of Americans are deficient
in the mineral. Like the minerals before, deficiency is widespread
according to many researchers and public health investigators. Researchers found that 46% of the patients
admitted to the ICU of a cancer center presented with Mg deficiency. Studies
suggest that cancer may not be able to exist in a body saturated with
magnesium. A type of magnesium
supplement that can cross the blood brain barrier and is implicated in age
related memory problems, is magnesium L-threonate. Several
sources have said it’s very hard to overdose on magnesium, and that like
Vitamin C, when you get too much you will experience diarrhea—an indication of
too much.
More about growing things in the next blog when I finish up
this section on (mostly) cancer causes, with two more important nutrients that
are not minerals. If you have a history
of cancer in your family, or are dealing with it now, getting these three minerals
into your diet are a no brainer.
