Which Food Fights Cancer Better?

Video 1.  Which Nut Fights Cancer Better? (YouTube link)

Below rankings are based on the food's capability to stop the proliferation of cancer cells.  So, the lower the reading is, the better it fights the cancer.

Which Vegetable Fights Cancer Better?

If you're concerned about a specific cancer type, you can choose vegetables known to help with that. For example, In the event of a family history of breast cancer, it is advisable to increase your consumption of foods belonging to the allium genus. But overall, the best way to protect against cancer is to eat a wide variety of vegetables every day. This ensures you're getting all the different nutrients and antioxidants that can help fight many types of cancer.

1. Garlic family (best)
2. Broccoli family
3. Radish
4. Kale
5. Yellow Onion
6. Rutabaga
7. Green bean
8. Red Cabbage

MCF-7, a famous line of human breast cancer cells, came from a patient in 1970. It was Dr. Herbert Soule and his team at Michigan Cancer Foundation (now called Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute) who discovered it.

Which Fruit Fights Cancer Better?

Apples beat bananas when it comes to stopping liver cancer cell growth, but cranberries are the real star.

1. Cranberry (best)
2. Lemon
3. Apple
4. Strawberry
5. Red grape
6. Banana
7. Grapefruit
8. Peach

Which Nut Fights Cancer Better?

We covered veggies and fruits (broccoli, garlic, cranberries, lemons), but what about nuts? Turns out, walnuts and pecans pack the most antioxidant punch. Just 25 walnuts have the antioxidant equivalent of eight grams of vitamin C!

1. Walnut (best)
2. Pecan
3. Peanut
4. Almond
5. Pine Nut, Cashew, Macadamia Nut
6. Hazel Nut, Pistachio, and Brazil Nut 

Anti-Angiogenic Foods

Cancer cells are commonly present in the body, but cannot grow into tumors without hooking up a blood supply.  Angiogenesis inhibitors in plant foods may help prevent this from happening.

See Also:

1. Anti-Cancer Potential of Sweet Potato Proteins
2. The Best Way to Cook Sweet Potatoes
3. Naturally-Occurring Antiangiogenic Substances (Travel to Health)
4. Superfood Bargains

Healthy Aging: Protein Consumption Advice for the Elderly

Figure 1.  Based on a survey of over 1500 people of 65 and over in the UK (source: @SilverM00NSHOTS)

Figure 2.  Rockwood frailty index^[59]

Protein is essential for your health. In the Mitochondrial Metabolic Therapy diet, Dr Mercola recommends you to target maximum 45 to 55 grams of protein per day for the optimal health. Why?

The reason is: when you consume more protein than your body needs, it may have the following adverse health effects:

• Excess protein burdens kidneys with removing extra nitrogen waste products from your blood^[15]
• Excess protein stimulates the production of IGF-1 (Insulin-like growth factor one)
• The more IGF-1 you have in your bloodstream, the higher your risk for developing cancers, such as prostate cancer^[45]
• Excess protein stimulates mTOR
• More details in this article

However, do consider to increase protein intake when

• The older you get (e.g., over 65 years old) the more important protein intake becomes to avoid lean muscle loss.^[12]
• Chan et al.^[54] reported that total and animal protein intakes were not associated with changes in physical performance and appendicular skeletal muscle (ASM) over a 4-year follow-up in Chinese community-dwelling older adults. However, people who had a relative vegetal protein consumption higher than 0.72 g/kg BW/day (Body Weight per day) lost significantly less ASM during the follow-up.
• However, studies found that muscle protein synthesis (MPS) reached a plateau at ~30 g of protein intake per meal.^[52,53] 
• According to Symons et al., meals providing large amounts of protein (e.g., 90 g) have no greater effects on MPS than moderate meal servings (e.g., ~30 g of protein).^[53]
• Hence, researchers suggested that a spread feeding pattern with at least 30 g of dietary protein during the main meals (i.e., breakfast, lunch, and dinner) could be a more effective strategy
• If we are going to increase our protein consumption after age 65, it would preferably be plant-based proteins to protect us from frailty^[48]
• If you choose plant-based proteins, note that the importance of co-ingestion of protein from foods such as soy, bean, and nuts, which could provide the quantity of EAAs (essential amino acids), BCAAs (branched EAAs), and leucine required for stimulating MPS, reducing the risk of sarcopenia and, thus, frailty.
• On days when you are seeking to increase your muscle mass with strength training

In this article, we will focus on the protein's role played in regulating mTOR's activities.

Video 1.  Starving Cancer with Methionine Restriction (YouTube link)

Figure 3.  The mTOR Pathway in the control of protein synthesis

What's mTOR

mTOR (a kinase) was named as it is the mammalian Target Of Rapamycin which is an antibiotic and immune-suppressor drug that inhibits mTOR's activities. It plays a key role in the regulation of protein synthesis , cell proliferation and autophagy.^[10,20] 

The process of clearing spent or defective proteins from cells, known as autophagy, slows down in people over the age of 65.  New UC Riverside research points to cells’ slowing ability to clean themselves as the likely cause of unhealthy brain buildup (i.e., amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles).^[61] 

Autophagy can be induced by fasting. When cells run short on proteins from an individual’s diet, they fill the void by recycling proteins already present in cells. Exercise also increases autophagy.  

mTOR forms two multi-protein complexes known as complex 1 (mTORC1) and 2 (mTORC2). Raptor and Rictor are the core proteins for mTORC1 and mTORC2, respectively.

In this article, we will use mTOR in general and mTORC1 in specific, but interchangeably, in the discussion of aging and carcinogenesis. Note that our understanding of the role of mTORC2 in the wider pathway is still evolving and will not be covered here.

Figure 4.  Leucine is predominantly found in animal-based food.

Figure 5.  Methionine is predominantly found in animal-based food.

Regulation of Protein Synthesis

In order for cells to grow and proliferate (i.e., manufacturing more proteins), the cells must ensure that they have the resources available for protein production. For example, cells must have

• Adequate energy resources
• An adequate energy intake is normally reached through the consumption of fat and carbohydrate.
• Availability of amino acid nutrients
• Oxygen abundance
• Proper growth factors

in order for mRNA translation to begin (i.e., protein production).

mTORC1 is known to regulate protein synthesis in the following ways:

• When mTOR is stimulated
• It cues the cell to grow and proliferate
• Of all the nutrients that stimulate mTOR, amino acids are the most potent
• Especially with methionine and leucine (note that both are essential amino acids)
• If over-activated,
• mTOR signaling significantly contributes to the initiation and development of tumors
• Hence come the benefits of
• Methionine restriction diets^{[21,23,27,32,38,41]}
• Leucine restriction diets (video) ^[10,17,37]
• When mTOR is limited
• It instructs the cell to turn on the array of repair and maintenance processes at its disposal, including autophagy (cleaning up cellular debris), DNA repair, and activating intracellular antioxidants.
• Autophagy and mitophagy, which are largely controlled by the mTOR, play an important role in controlling the amount of inflammation in your body and help slow down the aging process
• Rapamycin inhibits mTORC1, and this appears to provide most of the beneficial effects of the drug
• Rapamycin has been confirmed to increase lifespan in mice
• But like any drug, it has a long list of potentially serious side effects, including hytperlipidemia and hyperglycemia, anemia and stomatitis, in patients.^[39,40]
• Plant-based diets (a better alternative) are associated with lower risk for many cancers because their capability of “down-regulation” of mTOR.

Figure 6.  Milk-mediated mTORC1 signaling^[60]

mTOR and Cancer

There is a growing body of evidence that mTORC1 is upregulated in many types of cancers and plays a role in carcinogenesis^[18,19,60]

Milk consumption during adult life is associated with higher risks of common mTORC1-driven cancers, including Prostate Cancer, Breast Cancer, hepatocellular carcinoma, diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, and promotes the neurodegenerative diseases, Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer disease, which are all related to overstimulated mTORC1 signaling.^[60]

Below we will discuss the relationship of mTOR and two specific cancers:

• Prostate cancer
• Breast cancer

Prostate Cancer

• When mTOR is stimulated
• mTORC1 is upregulated in nearly 100% of advanced human prostate cancers.^[7]
• When mTOR is limited
• The potential prostate cancer protective effect of a plant-based diet may be explained by the reduction of dairy- and animal meat-derived leucine intake, and especially lower insulin and IGF-1 signaling of non-dairy plant-based diets attenuating overall mTORC1 activity.^[10]

Breast Cancer

• When mTOR is stimulated 
• Higher mTOR expression has been noted in breast cancer tumors, and associated with more aggressive disease, and lower survival rate among breast cancer patients.^[8]
• When mTOR is limited 
• Compared with the Swedish general population, women hospitalized for anorexia nervosa—one marker of caloric restriction—prior to age 40 years had a 53% lower incidence of breast cancer; nulliparous women with anorexia nervosa had a 23% lower incidence, and parous women with anorexia nervosa had a 76% lower incidence.^[9]

Video 2.  Prevent Cancer From Going on TOR (YouTube link)

How to Age Gracefully?

Life has one imperative which is to reproduce. Once our reproductive peak has passed, nature becomes apathetic to our survival, and we commence the process of programmed degeneration we call aging. To age gracefully, the goal is to

• Delay aging while simultaneously switch on restorative pathways — activate our internal housecleaning mechanisms (i.e., autophagy).

As a child, milk is presented as an endocrine signaling system, which activates mTORC1 —promotes cell growth and proliferation. Naturally, milk-mediated mTORC1 signaling is restricted only to the postnatal growth phase of human.

However, as we start aging, we should tip the balance of growth  towards more on the restorative pathways. As an adult, if you still persistently abuse the growth-promoting signaling system of cow milk. The consequences of sustained proliferative signaling is what we have witnessed today—the rising of cancer in the developed countries.

On the other hand, plant-based diets, especially cruciferous vegetables, not only decrease leucine-dependent mTORC1 activation but also they provide natural plant-derived inhibitors of mTORC1. Increasing studies have demonstrated that

• 3,3'-Diindolylmethane (DIM)
• Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG)
• Genistein
• Curcumin
• Resveratrol
• Caffeine

all inhibit mTORC1 signaling directly or indirectly and have been suggested to reduce the risk of prostate cancers and other common cancers.

Finally, to age gracefully, we should consider:

• Dr. Mercola's recommendation
• Reduce your protein intake
• Dr. Greger's suggestion,
• Switch to Vegan diets

References

1. Discovery improves understanding of cellular aging and cancer development
2. 10 PLANT-BASED PROTEINS YOU SHOULD BE EATING
• 1 lentils, 2 hemp seeds, 3 chia seeds 4 quinoa 5 spirulina 6 nutritional yeast 7 seeds 8 nuts 9 beans 10 tempeh/organic tofu/edamame
3. Increasing Protein Intake After Age 65
4. Ketogenic Diet Reduces Midlife Mortality and Improves Memory in Aging Mice
5. X Wang, C G Proud. MTORC1 signaling: What we still don't know. J Mol Cell Biol 2011 3(4):206 – 220.
6. J D Weber, D H Gutmann. Deconvoluting mTOR biology. Cell Cycle 2012 11(2):236 – 248.
7. B C Melnik, S M John, P Carrera-Bastos, L Cordain. The impact of cow's milk-mediated mTORC1-signaling in the initiation and progression of prostate cancer. Nutr Metab (Lond) 2012 9(1):74.
8. U Wazir, R F Newbold, W G Jiang, A K Sharma, K Mokbel. Prognostic and therapeutic implications of mTORC1 and Rictor expression in human breast cancer. Oncol Rep 2013 29(5):1969 – 1974.
9. K B Michels, A Ekbom. Caloric restriction and incidence of breast cancer. Jama 2004 291(10):1226 – 1230.
10. R F Lamb. Amino acid sensing mechanisms: An Achilles heel in cancer? FEBS J. 2012 279(15):2624 – 2631.
11. Prevent Cancer from Going on TOR
12. M. E. Levine et al., "Low Protein Intake Is Associated with a Major Reduction in IGF-1, Cancer, and Overall Mortality in the 65 and Younger but Not Older Population," Cell Metabolism, 19, no. 3 (2014): 407-17.
13. Growth Hormone Receptor Deficiency Is Assoiciated With a Major Reduction in Pro-aging Signaling, Cancer and Diabetes in Humans
14. Protein—the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
15. Risk Factors of Kidney Disease (Travel and Health)
16. C H Jung, H Kim, J Ahn, T I Jeon, D H Lee, T Y Ha. Fisetin regulates obesity by targeting mTORC1 signaling. J. Nutr. Biochem. 2013 24(8):1547 – 1554.
17. Sheen JH, Zoncu R, Kim D& Sabatini DM (2011) Defective regulation of autophagy upon leucine deprivation reveals a targetable liability of human melanoma cells in vitro and in vivo. Cancer Cell 19, 613–628.
• Research shows that restriction of the essential amino acid leucine may provoke apoptosis in cancer cells when used in combination with inhibition of autophagy.
18. Guertin DA and Sabatini DM: Defining the role of mTOR in cancer. Cancer Cell. 12:9–22. 2007.
19. Xu K, Liu P, Wei W (December 2014). "mTOR signaling in tumorigenesis". Biochimica et Biophysica Acta. 1846 (2): 638–54.
20. Toschi A, Lee E, Thompson S, et al: Phospholipase D-mTOR requirement for the Warburg effect in human cancer cells. Cancer Lett. 299:72–79. 2010.
21. Starving Cancer with Methionine Restriction
22. V. Agrawal, S. E. J. Alpini, E. M. Stone, E. P. Frenkel, A. E. Frankel. Targeting methionine auxotrophy in cancer: discovery & exploration. Expert Opin Biol Ther 2012 12(1):53 - 61.
23. M. F. McCarty, J. Barroso-Aranda, F. Contreras. The low-methionine content of vegan diets may make methionine restriction feasible as a life extension strategy. Med. Hypotheses 2009 72(2):125 - 128.
24. M. C. Ruiz, V. Ayala, M. Portero-Otín, J. R. Requena, G. Barja, R. Pamplona. Protein methionine content and MDA-lysine adducts are inversely related to maximum life span in the heart of mammals. Mech. Ageing Dev. 2005 126(10):1106 - 1114.
25. M. López-Torres, G. Barja. Lowered methionine ingestion as responsible for the decrease in rodent mitochondrial oxidative stress in protein and dietary restriction possible implications for humans. Biochim. Biophys. Acta 2008 1780(11):1337 - 1347.
26. E. Cohen. Chitin synthesis and degradation as targets for pesticide action. Arch. Insect Biochem. Physiol. 1993 22(1 - 2):245 - 261.
27. P. Cavuoto, M. F. Fenech. A review of methionine dependency and the role of methionine restriction in cancer growth control and life-span extension. Cancer Treat. Rev. 2012 38(6):726 - 736.
28. E. Boedeker, G. Friedel, T. Walles. Sniffer dogs as part of a bimodal bionic research approach to develop a lung cancer screening. Interact Cardiovasc Thorac Surg 2012 14(5):511 - 515.
29. H. Sonoda, S. Kohnoe, T. Yamazato, Y. Satoh, G. Morizono, K. Shikata, M. Morita, A. Watanabe, M. Morita, Y. Kakeji, F. Inoue, Y. Maehara. Colorectal cancer screening with odour material by canine scent detection. Gut 2011 60(6):814 - 819.
30. K. Yamagishi, K. Onuma, Y. Chiba, S. Yagi, S. Aoki, T. Sato, Y. Sugawara, N. Hosoya, Y. Saeki, M. Takahashi, M. Fuji, T. Ohsaka, T. Okajima, K. Akita, T. Suzuki, P. Senawongse, A. Urushiyama, K. Kawai, H. Shoun, Y. Ishii, H. Ishikawa, S. Sugiyama, M. Nakajima, M. Tsuboi, T. Yamanaka. Generation of gaseous sulfur-containing compounds in tumour tissue and suppression of gas diffusion as an antitumour treatment. Gut 2012 61(4):554 - 561.
31. H. Y. Guo, H. Herrera, A. Groce, R. M. Hoffman. Expression of the biochemical defect of methionine dependence in fresh patient tumors in primary histoculture. Cancer Res. 1993 53(11):2479 - 2483.
32. D. E. Epner. Can dietary methionine restriction increase the effectiveness of chemotherapy in treatment of advanced cancer? J Am Coll Nutr 2001 20(Suppl 5):443S-449S; discussion 473S-475S.
33. E. Cellarier, X. Durando, M. P. Vasson, M. C. Farges, A. Demiden, J. C. Maurizis, J. C. Madelmont, P. Chollet. Methionine dependency and cancer treatment. Cancer Treat. Rev. 2003 29(6):489 - 499.
34. B. C. Halpern, B. R. Clark, D. N. Hardy, R. M. Halpern, R. A. Smith. The effect of replacement of methionine by homocystine on survival of malignant and normal adult mammalian cells in culture. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 1974 71(4):1133 - 1136.
35. C. M. Willis, S. M. Church, C. M. Guest, W. A. Cook, N. McCarthy, A. J. Bransbury, M. R. T. Church, J. C. T. Church. Olfactory detection of human bladder cancer by dogs: Proof of principle study. BMJ 2004 329(7468):712.
36. D. Pickel, G. P. Manucy, D. B. Walker, S. B. Hall, J. C. Walker. Evidence for canine olfactory detection of melanoma. App Anim Behav Sci 2004 89(1):107-­116.
37. Living Longer by Reducing Leucine Intake
38. Methionine restriction extends lifespan of Drosophila melanogaster under conditions of low amino-acid status
39. Blattler, S. M., Cunningham, J. T., Verdeguer, F., Chim, H., Haas, W., Liu, H., Romanino, K., Ruegg, M. A., Gygi, S. P., Shi, Y. and Puigserver, P. (2012) Yin Yang 1 deficiency in skeletal muscle protects against rapamycin-induced diabetic-like symptoms through activation of insulin/IGF signaling. Cell Metab. 15, 505-517.
40. Caloric Restriction vs. Animal Protein Restriction
41. Methionine Restriction as a Life-Extension Strategy
42. Heath Effects of Iron Overload and Benefits of Blood Donation (Travel to Health)
43. Which Food Fights Cancer Better? (Travel to Health)
44. Plant Proteins that Pack a Punch (Infographic)
45. Rowlands MA, Gunnell D, Harris R. Vatten L.J, Holly JM, Martin RM. Circulating insulin-like growth factor peptides and prostate cancer risk: a systematic review and meta-analysis.  Int J Cancer. 2009; 124(10):2416-29.
46. Vegetarians: How to Get Enough Protein? (Travel to Health)
47. Aspartate is a limiting metabolite for cancer cell proliferation under hypoxia and in tumours
48. Should We Increase Our Protein Intake After Age 65?
49. Protein Intake and Frailty: A Matter of Quantity, Quality, and Timing
50. Beasley, J.M.; Lacroix, A.Z.; Neuhouser, M.L.; Huang, Y.; Tinker, L.; Woods, N.; Michael, Y.; Curb, J.D.; Prentice, R.L. Protein intake and incident frailty in the women’s health initiative observational study. J. Am. Geriatr. Soc. 2010, 58, 1063–1071.
51. Coelho-Júnior, H.; Rodrigues, B.; Uchida, M.; Marzetti, E.; Coelho-Júnior, H.J.; Rodrigues, B.; Uchida, M.; Marzetti, E. Low Protein Intake Is Associated with Frailty in Older Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies. Nutrients 2018, 10, 1334.
52. Moore, D.R.; Robinson, M.J.; Fry, J.L.; Tang, J.E.; Glover, E.I.; Wilkinson, S.B.; Prior, T.; Tarnopolsky, M.A.; Phillips, S.M. Ingested protein dose response of muscle and albumin protein synthesis after resistance exercise in young men. Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 2009, 89, 161–168.
53. Symons, T.B.; Sheffield-Moore, M.; Wolfe, R.R.; Paddon-Jones, D. A Moderate Serving of High-Quality Protein Maximally Stimulates Skeletal Muscle Protein Synthesis in Young and Elderly Subjects. J. Am. Diet. Assoc. 2009, 109, 1582–1586.
54. Chan, R.; Leung, J.; Woo, J.; Kwok, T. Associations of dietary protein intake on subsequent decline in muscle mass and physical functions over four years in ambulant older Chinese people. J. Nutr. Health Aging 2014, 18, 171–177.
55. How Muscles Age, and How Exercise Can Slow It
56. Study shows protein that reverses aging of skeletal muscle
57. Mayer C, Zhao J, Yuan X, Grummt I (2004) mTOR-dependent activation of the transcription factor TIF-IA links rRNA synthesis to nutrient availability. Genes Dev 18:423–434.
58. Lifetime Impact of Cow’s Milk on Overactivation of mTORC1: From Fetal to Childhood Overgrowth, Acne, Diabetes, Cancers, and Neurodegeneration (good)
• Milk consumption during adult life is associated with higher risks of common mTORC1-driven cancers, including Prostate Cancer, Breast Cancer, hepatocellular carcinoma, diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, and promotes the neurodegenerative diseases, Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer disease, which are all related to overstimulated mTORC1 signaling.
59. Nutrition and Frailty: Opportunities for Prevention and Treatment
60. Lifetime Impact of Cow’s Milk on Overactivation of mTORC1: From Fetal to Childhood Overgrowth, Acne, Diabetes, Cancers, and Neurodegeneration
61. Does Data-Independent Acquisition Data Contain Hidden Gems? A Case Study Related to Alzheimer's Disease