Chilli, garlic and cancer

Studies in the United States and Japan have shown that Capsaicin (which is what makes chilli peppers hot) can cause cancer cells to die. Capsaicin caused 80 percent of human prostate cancer cells growing in mice to self-destruct in a process known as apoptosis, researchers said.

A study published in the Cancer Research journal showed that a protein active in prostate cancer cells in mice was significantly beaten back by capsaicin. Professor H. Phillip Koeffler, the study's lead author added that capsaicin was also effective against leukemia.

Other research has confirmed this. "Capsaicin had a profound anti-proliferative effect on human prostate cancer cells in culture," said Dr. Soren Lehmann of the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and the University of California Los Angeles School of Medicine.

As a supplement, cayenne pepper has been used for years for cardiovascular support. It contains many phytochemicals, vitamins, and minerals. Cayenne cleans the blood and stimulates the entire system allowing hormonal signals to make their way unimpeded through the body, and enhances the immune response. In countries that have very hot cuisine, there are significantly lower cancer and heart disease rates.

Garlic has been used for many years to treat skin cancer. A garlic poultice pasted onto the tumour can cause the tumour to shrivel and die (or fall off) in a matter of days. This idea wouldn’t surprise naturopaths, though it’s still shocking to many Western doctors.

Yet, in a study published in the July 2003 Archives of Dermatological Research, researchers applied ajoene (the organosulfur compound found in garlic) topically to the skin tumours of patients with either nodular or superficial basal cell carcinoma, and in 17 of the 21 patients, the tumours shrank significantly.

Garlic has also been shown to aid white blood cells in the defence against cancer, and to increase the body's ability to destroy tumours. It has been found to stimulate inteferon production, enhance natural killer cells, stop tumour growth, and even reduce the associated pain of cancer.

Substances found in garlic, such as allicin, have been shown to not only protect colon cells from the toxic effects of cancer-causing chemicals, but also to stop the growth of cancer cells once they develop. Research has also suggested that garlic may confer protection against the development of stomach cancer through its potential ability to decrease H.pylori-induced gastritits.

Researchers are now working on binding allicin (the active ingredient in garlic) to an antibody that binds with tumour cells, thus delivering the the allicin directly to the tumour. This seems to be the perfect blend of herbs and Western medicine: a natural substance delivered to tumor cells via a Western-developed targeting system.

So - spice up your diet! Add fresh chilli peppers and garlic to stir-fried vegetables or spicy dishes. Incidentally, garlic increases in nutritional value when it is left for 15 minutes after peeling and chopping - before being used raw or cooked. It's also worth knowing that, taken together, cayenne increases the effectivness of garlic by ten times.

If you're not a lover of garlic or spicy foods, however, both garlic and capsiacin (cayenne) can be taken in the form of capsules. Always take the cayenne capsules just as you are about to eat some cold food - in order to avoid a kind of 'heartburn' in your tummy.

Note: no single food or supplement should ever be thought of a cure but rather as part of an overall healthy diet and lifestyle. For more health information see the Food For Thought web site.