The incidence of cancer shoots up after the World War II. There are many theories trying to explain this but most scientists agree that this is probably because the change in our lifestyle (become more sedentary), our eating habits (consume more processed food) and also the ridiculous amount of pollutants on our sick earth.
No, it is not because of more screening programs or greater awareness (like many doctors will argue)--this only contributes to earlier detection hence better survival.
The cancers that have no screening programs/ not routinely screened are also on the rise eg pancreas, brain, lymphoma.
No, the rise in cancers cannot be explained by the population ageing alone (we now live longer therefore we get more cancer cases).
The cancers of childhood and adolescent are among the most that have risen.
For my friends you can check yourself at the website of the
International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).
See this fantastic
cancer distribution map (it even gives you the percentage of the specific type of cancers involved) and you will see that per 100 thousands individuals in North America, 330 people will be affected by cancer as opposed to South East Asia, only 119 affected. In simpler terms if you are living in North America you have more than double the risk of getting cancer than if you live in South East Asia.
(
eh macammana nak copy map ni masuk blog? hehe tak reti, sila klik sendiri ok)Especially for breast, prostate and colon cancers, they are 9 times more prevalent in North America and Northern Europe than in Asia or Africa.
This leads to the thinking that the lifestyle of the people in Asia (and Africa) are protective against cancers.
Is it the Asian genes? No.
Chinese immigrants living in San Francisco have almost triple rate of having breast cancer as compared to Chinese women in Shanghai.(
ni among other evidence la, malas nak tulis lebih2).
The truth is, cancer is a disease of Western lifestyle.
Our Genius AncestorsThanks to our genius ancestors (Malay, Chinese, Indians), our local cuisine is full of anticancer properties!
Who would have thought what we eat everyday are actually medicines for our bodies? They have created our cuisine as such that whatever we eat will help us to fight diseases. Because we eat it everyday, we take it for granted, but for Westerners who just learned that turmeric, garlic, onions and many more Asian spices can kill cancer cells, it sure is a big step for them to incorporate those spices in their dishes. In the Anticancer facebook page somebody asked for tips to use turmeric (
kunyit) in cooking other than curry. I laughed at first, until few others replied giving funny suggestions eg sprinkle in your salad dressing(!!). I did not reply to that question. They would have to taste our
ayam goreng first hehehe (and other long list of recipes using ayam goreng as the base). Not to forget
rendang, pulut kuning, gulai this and
gulai that.
Turmeric (photofrom Wikipedia)
I think I have written before that I was forced to drink turmeric, tamarind and honey juice after Abid's birth. I'm sure it must be one hell of a medicine.
Of course, there are many other confounding factors that protect us- our strong spiritual wellbeing, enough sun (vit D deficiency is now linked to cancer development-many Westerners now get supplements esp during winter) and the fact that we eat freshly prepared food.
For now, be grateful that we are Asian. Our everyday meals are meant to fight diseases, our cheap warungs or cafes cook freshly prepared food (unlike here, cheap foodstalls or take-aways all cook fastfoods ie fries, sausages, burgers) and we get the precious sun rays everyday.
To begin an anticancer lifestyle, reduce your consumption of processed foods eg biscuits, cakes, canned food, sodas, cordials, processed meats (burgers, sausages). They contain high levels of hydrogenated fats (cheap fat), high-fructose corn syrup (cheap sweetener) and chemical preservatives. Will explain more later.
Bake your own cakes and biscuits. Eat fresh. Eat Asian.
