Don’t Forget About the Power of Healthy Eating This Movember
It’s about to get a bit hairy this month…the Mo-vember campaign to raise funds and awareness for prostate cancer is here. Men the world over are going to be growing a Mo in support of those with prostate cancer but how many will be talking about the food that slips past that mo?
More than an estimated 23,000 Canadian men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer this year; it is a disease that takes years to develop and the way we choose to nourish our bodies can alter our risk. A lower fat, higher fibre diet is associated with better outcomes and in the research, comprehensive lifestyle changes that include low fat vegan diets and stress reduction can even change your genetic fate in early disease.
So go ahead and grow that Mo…but feed it (and yourself) well with these quick tips.
- Veg Out!
Eat as many plant foods – fruit, vegetables, nuts, seeds, intact grains and legumes – as possible as they flood the tissues with nutrients to build and repair, cleanse and restore. This type of diet pattern is also associated with lower fat, higher fibre eating – more power to the prostate!
- Focus on prostate-protectors.
Some foods are particularly well researched in the battle of the bulg-ing prostate. Lycopene in tomatoes, tomato sauce and tomato paste should be on the menu alongside whole organic soy foods and cruciferous veggies like kale, cabbage and broccoli. Wash it all down with some delicious green tea, packed with cancer fighting potential. Food is slow medicine so be sure to eat these foods regularly and over time, they will help fight cancer risk.
- Cut the fat.
According to Prostate Cancer Canada, men who consume more saturated fats from processed foods, high fat dairy and meats are at greater risk. Choose low fat dairy or vegetarian alternatives; eat more beans, poultry and fish and start eating clean. Not all fat is bad – you just need to be choosy. More olive oil, avocados and nuts. Fewer bacon double cheeseburgers.
Show your support this Movember…grow your Mo and eat your broccoli!