Fight with fiber - includes recipes - Preventing Cancer: What We Know Today

Vibrant Life, May-June, 1995 by Georgia E. Hodgkin

One of the 10 leading causes of death, eight are influenced by what you eat. Cancer, the number two killer, is one of those.

One food component that helps fight cancer is fiber, that part of our food that cannot be digested by the enzymes within the gastrointestinal tract. It acts like a traffic cop to keep food moving smoothly and quickly through the digestive system.

The increased pace will decrease the opportunity for absorption of cancer promoters in foods. The National Cancer Institute recommends that we consume 20 to 30 grams of fiber each day. These recipes are good sources of dietary fiber.

TWO-COLOR KIDNEY

BEAN SALAD

1 15-ounce can dark-red kidney beans, undrained 1 15-ounce can light-red kidney beans, undrained 1 cup scallions, chopped 1 tsp. salt 1 tsp. brown sugar 3/4 CUP lemon juice 3 T. watercress, freshly chopped for garnish 1 head romaine lettuce

Pour the beans and their liquid into a large bowl. Blend in the scallions, salt, brown sugar, and lemon juice. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Before serving, drain off the liquid. Serve chilled over a bed of torn romaine leaves. Sprinkle the watercress over the beans as a garnish. Serves: 4. Calories per serving: 210; protein: 14 grams; fiber: 12 grams.

BLACK BEAN SOUP

2 cups dry black beans 2 medium-sized onions, peeled and chopped 3 cloves garlic 2 celery stalks, diced 2 carrots, peeled and sliced 1/4 tsp. parsley 1/4 tsp. thyme 1 1/2 quarts of water 1 quart McKay's Chicken-Style Seasoning Broth Salt, to taste 1 lemon, thinly sliced, seeds removed

Soak beans overnight. Place soaked and drained beans in large soup pot. Add onions, garlic, celery, carrots, parsley, thyme, water, and seasoned broth. Bring to a boil, and simmer, partially covered, for 1 1/2 hours, or until beans are very tender or easily mashed. Use a blender to puree; thin with more water if too thick. Return to soup pot. Add salt to taste. Just prior to serving, bring to a simmer. Float 1 or 2 lemon slices on top of each bowl of soup. Serves: 10 (1 -cup servings). Colories per serving: 110; protein: 7 grams; fiber: 4 grams.

WHOLE-WHEAT BREAD

1 1/4 cups warm water (not hot) 1 T. dry yeast 2 T. oil 2 tsps. salt 2 T. honey 1 cup whole-wheat flour 2 cups white flour

Dissolve yeast in warm water in large mixing bowl. Add oil, salt, honey, and flours, and stir. Add sufficient white flour to form a smooth ball. Knead 10 minutes or until elastic, or use douqh hook on mixer to knead for 10 minutes. Form into ball. To keep top from drying, coat with small amount of oil and cover with a towel. Let rise until volume doubles or approximately 30 to 45 minutes. Punch down, let rise for 20 minutes. Form into 1 large loaf or 2 small loaves by turning outside in and pinching edges together on the bottom. Let rise in bread pans until volume doubles, or approximately 30 to 45 minutes. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes at 3750F. Tap top of loaf; a hollow sound means loaf is done. Yield: 1 large or 2 small loaves (16 regular slices). Calories per slice: 100; protein: 2.5 grams; fiber: 1.3 grams.

WHITE BEAN AND

CORN SOUP

1 pound dry small white beans 2 quarts vegetable chicken broth 2 tsp. savory or thyme leaves 1 14-ounce can stewed tomatoes 1 17-ounce can creamed corn 2 T. olive oil Salt to taste

Rinse and drain beans. Place in crockpot. Add broth and herbs. Simmer overnight or until beans are tender. Add tomatoes, corn, oil, and salt. Simmer 30 minutes to blend flavors. Serves: 10. Calories: 220; protein: 10 grams; fiber: 5 grams.

TRAIL MIX

2 pounds mixed roasted nuts 1 cup raisins 1 cup coconut 1 cup dried apricot pieces 1 cup dried pear pieces

Combine all ingredients and mix well. Yields: 11 cups. Calories per 1/4 cup: 175; protein: 4 grams; fiber: 2.5 grams.

Georgia E. Hodgkin, Ed.D., i5 an associate professor in the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics of Loma Linda University, Loma Linda, California.

NIH - Urgent Need for Study on

Possible Poultry, cancer Link

In the past 10 years new retroviruses (similar to the AIDS virus) have been emerging with increasing frequency. Many of these retroviruses found in animals were thought to be incapable of infecting humans.

However, Eric Johnson from the National Institutes of Health says it's time to take a closer look, particularly at poultry. He reported in Cancer Detection and Prevention (18, No. 1 [1994): 9-30) that retroviruses are highly prevalent in chickens and turkeys and con cause tumors in them. Commercial chickens have been found positive for antibodies, and a proportion actually carry the infectious viruses.

Previously most, but not all, of the blood studies in humans to defect these antibodies have been negative. But researchers are finding that the absence of antibodies does not necessarily mean a person is free of infection.

The question remains: Can these retroviruses found in poultry really cause cancer in humans? Johnson states that a possible link between chicken viruses and human cancer has hardly been studied. But he adds that humans being universally exposed to these viruses and the possibility of some of the viruses causing cancer make it imperative that we know for certain.