The Fruit Your Colon Craves
If you had to choose one fruit to keep your colon happy, which would it be?
If you said apples, that’s not a bad choice. The kind of fiber in apples — called pectin — appears to both bump up colon-protective compounds and clamp down on cancer-causing ones.
The Power of Pectin
In a lab study, apple pectin increased levels of butyrate, a fatty acid that not only keeps colon tissue healthy but also slows the production of a cancer-causing substance. Apple juice extracts amped up butyrate as well.
3 More Keys to Colon Health
To keep your colon in good shape, get screened for colon cancer on a schedule recommended by your doctor. And here are some specific diet do’s:
Load up on whole grains for fiber.
Drink milk instead of soda. Calcium and vitamin D protect your colon, but sugar seems to do the opposite.
Add sliced onions to a salad or sub. You may need to carry breath mints everywhere, but boosting your cancer defenses is worth it
The Real Colon-Cancer Deal
The debate about whether fiber helps reduce colon cancer risk has been almost as hotly contested as the presidential primaries.
The latest exit poll? Campaigning for more fiber-rich whole-grain breads, cereals, and pasta in your diet is good for your colon. But fiber can’t take all the credit for keeping your plumbing clear of cancer.
The Whole Whole Grain
When researchers studied the diets of a large group of older men and women over a 5-year period, only fiber from whole-grain foods brought down colon cancer risk (by 20 percent). Fiber from other sources? Not so much. All of which suggests it may not be the fiber per se, but rather the other good-for-you things found in whole grains — like vitamins, minerals, cell-protective phenols, and other plant substances — that make whole grains so good for your colon.
Check out Healthy BPM for some advice.
August 29th, 2008 at 10:51 am
[...] Original post by Brick ONeil [...]
August 29th, 2008 at 11:34 am
[...] Original post by Brick ONeil [...]
August 29th, 2008 at 12:02 pm
[...] Amy wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptIf you had to choose one fruit to keep your colon happy, which would it be? If you said apples, that’s not a bad choice. The kind of fiber in apples — called pectin — appears to both bump up colon-protective compounds and clamp down on … [...]