It's confirmed: Studies just completed by the Vanderbilt Cancer Center and the Shanghai Cancer Institute report that a diet rich in certain vegetables can reduce your risk of getting breast cancer.
Which ones? The cruciferous ones -- Chinese cabbage, Bok choi, turnips, broccoli, kale, and cauliflower. These foods contain compounds (isothiocyanates and indole-3-carbinol, in case anyone asks) believed to have anti-cancer properties.
Though this effect of vegetables on cancer has been hypothesized for years, it's been a hard one to prove. Since each woman has a unique genetic profile that may (or may not) predispose her to getting breast cancer, it has been difficult to identify a population without any risk factors in whom to test this diet.
What's the downside to adding more of these veggies to your daily diet? Feeling a little gassier; but this seems like a small price to pay for women who fear getting this disease (which means most of us).
How many servings of cruciferous veggies do you need to eat to get their anti-cancer benefit? Ideally, 1-2 servings a day -- so it's perfectly doable.
