Anticancer

Broccoli, mushrooms, ginger, turmeric, garlic, onions, olive oil, tofu, maybe some red wine … sounds like dinner, right? How about dark chocolate, raspberries, peaches, and plums for dessert? These are just some of the delicious building-blocks of the anticancer diet.


I just finished reading Anticancer: A New Way of Life by David Servan-Schreiber, MD, PhD. The book was recommended to me by a friend after hearing about my interest in the role of food in health. Anticancer was enjoyable and interesting reading, well-written from a personal point of view, and with a tone that underscores how relevant the topic is to everyone. While the book provides a broader perspective of cancer biology and physiology, and the environmental and lifestyle factors that influence its growth and development, there was a large focus on food and nutrition that definitely classifies it as a Food Book on my list.

Dr. Servan-Schreiber links the rise in cancer in Western countries since 1940 to the dramatic changes in diet that have occurred during that time. According to his research, today 56% of the Western diet caloric intake is from three sources that were non-existent until very recently: refined sugar, bleached flour, and processed vegetable oils. In addition, he points out that today’s factory farming techniques have radically altered the nutritional profile of meats and animal products by eliminating grazing and changing animal diets to be grain-intensive – resulting in a large imbalance of omega-3 vs. omega-6 fatty acids in Western diets. These radical and recent dietary changes all have the effect of feeding into the cancer biology and intensifying the growth and spread of cancers that our own immune systems could have otherwise suppressed.

Through clear narrative description, straight-forward charts and graphs, and both scientific and anecdotal evidence Servan-Schreiber manages to address this difficult and often depressing topic in a way that gives hope and also empowers the individual to take charge of their own physical, spiritual and emotional health. From a Doctor, this book is remarkably humble and presents a broad spectrum of holistic ideas about disease and health. A valuable resource for anyone interested in real information about the effect of food on health and disease.