Tomatoes: Fight Against Breast Cancer

In our previous post, we started a teaching about the ways to prevent cancer. In as much as the cause is not known, and there is no promise of 100 percent protection when eating a certain type of meal, it is increasingly clear that breast cancer prevention and diet go hand in hand. Thanks to the right foods’ incredible ability to heal and protect our body from diseases.

First of all amongst all other risk factors, research explains that as postmenopausal ages, her body mass index tends to climb, a clear risk factor for breast cancer. When it comes to reducing breast cancer risk, you can’t change your family history. But you can change your nutritional habits and that could go a long way in decreasing your risk.

“Because the majority of breast cancer cases don’t have a genetic link, you have to conclude that lifestyle factors, including diet, play a large role,” says Mary Flynn, R.D., co-author of “The Pink Ribbon Diet”

There are various ranges of food that help reduce the risk of having breast cancer, some fall under the do’s while the others falls under the don’ts. Take for instance, it is preferable to choose spinach, kale and dark leave vegetables to use in food which is loaded with folate that helps reduce cancer risk. While we should also cut off all processed meat from our diet because they contain cancer causing compounds as preservatives.

Bringing it back home to our focus for today, tomatoes on the other hand increases adiponectin levels. This hormone plays an important role in the regulation of fat and blood sugar level, this helps lowers the body mass index (BMI), and in return, reduces the risk of breast cancer.

Here are some tips for tomato lovers:

  • Opt for fresh tomatoes, instead of canned tomatoes. Most cans in the supermarket are lined with bisphenol A, or BPA, a hormone-disrupting chemical actually linked to breast cancer.
  • Always chose organic, this is because pesticide residue testing has found 5 types of known or probable carcinogens, along with 16 suspected hormone disrupting chemical, on nonorganic tomatoes samples.
  • Grow your own tomatoes, if you have a garden tofresh-tomato-394308

How to select and store tomatoes for the best benefits to prevent breast cancer;

  1. Choose tomatoes that have rich colors. Deep reds are a great choice.
  2. It should be well shaped and smooth skinned with no wrinkles, cracks, bruises, or soft spots
  3. Since tomatoes are sensitive to cold, and it will impede their ripening process, store them at room temperature and out of direct exposure to sunlight. They will keep for up to a week, depending upon how ripe they are when purchased
  4. It can be frozen or sundried. If you want to use after freezing, remove it 30 minute from freezer before use to regain its maximum juiciness and flavor. Sun-dried tomatoes should be stored in an airtight container, with or without olive oil, in a cool dry place

Tips for cooking tomatoes:

  • Before serving, wash tomatoes under cool running water and pat dry
  • We recommend avoidance of aluminum cookware since the high acid content of the tomatoes may interact with the metal in the cookware. As a result, there may be migration of aluminum into the food, which may not only impart an unpleasant taste, but more importantly, may have a potentially unwanted impact on your health.
  • Whenever possible, try to develop recipes that make use of the whole tomato
  • Enjoy a classic Italian salad—sliced onions, tomatoes and mozzarella cheese drizzled with olive oilcherry-tomato-caprese-salad-2-of-2
  • There are so many YouTube videos that can teach how to make food using whole tomatoes or mainly tomatoes.

Try to always involve tomatoes in your food as a diet habit.

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By Blessing Nwachukwu | [email protected]

Diet234 Team

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