Could Cantaloupes Help Prevent Cancer?
Could Cantaloupes Help Prevent Cancer?
Well, if you only eat a single cantaloupe from time to time, probably not.
But you may be able to prevent cancer by regularly eating cantaloupe along with other fruits and vegetables in the cucurbit vine growing families, such as pumpkin, squash, cucumber, zucchini, honeydew, and watermelon.
Most of us enjoy this amazingly sweet fruit on a hot summer day, but I’ll bet you didn’t know just how good it is for you!
Cantaloupes have one of the highest concentrations of vitamin A when compared to all other fruits! They contain approximately 3500 IU per ½ pound of an averagely sized cantaloupe. We all have heard that vitamin A can improve night vision, but did you know that it is also now regarded as an anti-cancer vitamin?
A recent study published in The Journal of Nucleic Acids Research found a link between prostate cancer and Retinoic acid (a metabolite of vitamin A-retinol):
“All-trans retinoic acid therapy (ATRA) is already used in another cancer – acute promyelomcytic leukaemia (APL) – and has been hugely successful in improving survival rates from 0% to 80%.”
Interestingly, vitamin A metabolites in combination with toxic chemotherapy have already been used in cancer treatments:
“Retinoids are used to treat cancer, in part because of their ability to induce differentiation and arrest proliferation.”
Another powerful punch offered by the Cantaloupe is its content of flavonoids. Research is now proving the impact of flavonoids on cancer prevention. In 2011, the following was published in The Journal of Environmental Science and Health:
“Dietary flavonoids, combined with other components such as various vitamins, play an important role in cancer prevention…Overall, exciting data show that dietary flavonoids could be considered as a useful cancer preventive approach. “
Zeaxanthin, most known for its protective properties against Age-Related Macular Degeneration (ARMD), is now getting some attention for its ability to protect against other age-related diseases including cancer. The Journal of the American College of Nutrition recently published an article about Zeaxanthin and disease prevention which concluded in part:
“A continuously growing body of evidence suggests that lutein and zeaxanthin may contribute to the protection against several age-related diseases, including cataract, AMD, heart disease, and some forms of cancer.”
And as if this weren’t enough, the mighty melon also contains some of the highest amounts of manganese – a co-factor of the powerful antioxidant enzyme, Superoxide Dismutase (SOD).
Research is now proving that SOD is an important player in the fight against cancer cells. According to a study published in Nature, 2000:
“Our results indicate that targeting SOD may be a promising approach to the selective killing of cancer cells, and that mechanism-based combinations of SOD inhibitors with free-radical-producing agents may have clinical applications.”
Cantaloupes are not only one of the healthiest fruits, they are also incredibly delicious and have an average Glycemic Index (GI) of only 65!
Is it any wonder that cantaloupes are one of the most frequently consumed fruits in America?
To learn more, Click this link for access to the FREE natural cancer treatments docu-series, “The Truth About Cancer”, where more than 100 doctors, scientists, researchers, and cancer survivors join together to give you the real information no one is telling you about cancer.
Resources:
- Retinoids, retinoic acid receptors, and cancer.
- York cancer scientists discover link between prostate cancer and vitamin A
- Lutein and Zeaxanthin and Their Potential Roles in Disease Prevention
- Dietary flavonoids as cancer prevention agents.
- Superoxide dismutase as a target for the selective killing of cancer cells.
- Carb Counts for Cantaloupe: Cantaloupe Nutritional Information
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