Greens are recommended for breast cancer
By greens, we mean leafy cruciferous vegetables, including collard greens, mustard greens and arugula (Eruca sativa). Turnip greens are covered in the turnips page. Greens are a good dietary source of vitamin C, vitamin A, vitamin K, folate, calcium, manganese, and various other minerals. Greens have been shown to have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, and to improve glucose metabolism and be cardioprotective. Greens contain beta-carotene and other carotenoids, quercetin, isorhamnetin, ferulic acid, kaempferol, sulforaphane, indole-3-carbinol (I3C), 3,3'-diindolylmethane (DIM) and several other isothiocyanates, sinigrin and other glucosinolate hydrolysis products, most of which have been reported to have anti-cancer properties. Cruciferous vegetables have been shown to inhibit the growth of human pancreatic cancer cells and to reduce the risk of lung, gallbladder, bladder, prostate, ovarian and colorectal cancer.
Breast cancer-related effects of eating greens
Components of greens have been found to down-regulate hormone receptor expression, promote apoptosis, suppress cell cycle progression and inhibit angiogenesis of human breast cancer cells. Consumption of brassica vegetables has been shown to reduce the estrogen metabolite 16alpha-hydroxyestrone, which is a breast cancer promoter, and to be marginally inversely associated with breast cancer risk in population studies. A Korean study found an association between kale consumption and lower incidence of breast cancer (kale is closely related to greens). Greens components quercetin, I3C and sulforaphane have all been shown increase the anti-cancer effects of the chemotherapy drug Taxol (paclitaxel). Sulforaphane has been shown to act as a histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor. HDAC inhibitors have been found to increase the effectiveness of the anti-estrogen drug tamoxifen by causing a synergistic increase in apoptosis and cell death.
Additional comments
Collard greens and mustard greens are healthiest when prepared by steaming and not by stir-frying. Non-organic greens must be washed very thoroughly to remove pesticide residue.
Greens can reduce the bioavailability of iodine in the diet. Cruciferous vegetables contain thioglucoside compounds that can interfere with the formation of thyroid hormone.
Tags: DIM, I3C, Indole-3-carbinol, Korean, Taxol, angiogenesis, arugula, betaCarotene, calcium, cardiovascular, carotenoids, chemotherapy, collardGreens, estrone, folate, greens, inflammation, iodine, isothiocyanates, kaempferol, kale, mustard, ovarianCancer, paclitaxel, sulforaphane, tamoxifen, thyroid, vitaminA, vitaminC, zeaxanthin