Is a Vegetarian or Vegan Diet for Cancer Patients helpful?

Numerous researches are being done to prevent cancer or in other words finding different ways that can decrease the risk of cancer. Here we have for you a detailed article on the impact of a vegan diet for cancer patients.
People, most of the times choose to be in a vegan or even a vegetarian diet mainly for two basic reasons:

• They support animal rights.
• They are looking forward to better health.

Then of course in a country like ours, there are certain religious beliefs attached to it as well. But over the last few years, the reason for gaining better health is getting attention from researchers around the world. There are a number of constant findings that have been coming forward that say how diet free of animal meat or any animal product can help you achieve good health.

One of the most striking findings from the modern day research has been on a vegan or minimal animal product diet can be helpful in preventing cancer and might even help with the healing of patients suffering from the dreadful disease.

In case you have been suffering from mesothelioma, being on a vegan or vegetarian diet can help you with improving your life quality.

Here are some important findings for you that state the impact of a vegan diet for cancer patients:

• Cancer Prevention and Vegan and Vegetarian Diets:

Numerous studies have observed the health outcomes of people that are on a vegan/ vegetarian diet and others that eat meat.

1. There was one key finding of the research that people that were on a vegetarian diet had lower rates of cancer and this included all different kinds of cancer.
2. Another smaller study that was done found out that being vegan was even better. When other factors like family history of cancer and smoking were controlled, still the study showcased that a vegan diet that was being followed by women reduced their risk of cancer by 34% that women that were on a healthful diet that also included meat.

And although there are other numerous benefits of being on a vegan diet, this certainly remains the most prominent one.

• What can be the possible reason behind plant-based diet and cancer prevention?

So learning the science behind how these results are being observed is important. And there are a few key reasons supporting the benefit of a plant-based diet for cancer prevention:

1. There is a high amount of fiber that is obtained from a plant-based diet or a vegan diet. The higher amount of fiber in the diet has been already proven as preventing cancer. So this makes it clear how plant-based diet works. There have been multiple pieces of research done on fiber and all findings have indicated it to protect you against several kinds of cancer.

2. Then the second reason can be that when you avoid meat in your diet it can protect you from the cancers related to fat. All of the animal products that we consume do tend to be high in fat and especially the saturated kind. Having a higher amount of fat in the diet has also been one of the reasons to increase the risk of cancer. So while you are on a vegan diet, chances are that you are having fat in your diet but it’s the unsaturated kind. You must be aware that saturated fat is specifically associated with cancer risk.

3. Having a higher intake of fruits and vegetable in your diet is crucial for the prevention of cancer. When you eat more fruits and vegetables you will not just have high fiber and unsaturated fat but also important nutrients that help combat cancer cells. There are substances like flavones, antioxidants, beta carotenes that have been already proven to have anticancer properties in them.

What is a healthier diet for cancer patients and Mesothelioma?

Not only does being on a vegetarian or vegan diet help you with reducing the cancer risk, but it can have miraculous effects on cancer patients as well. For cancer patients to feel better and promote an overall better healthy diet, a vegan or plant-based diet that has low amounts of meat or animal product is good.

This will help them to better tolerate the treatments they are going through and hence fight the diseases in a more efficient manner. There are specific evidence-based studies that supports that these diets are beneficial for cancer patients.

• For instance, with the addition to showing how animal fat can increases the risk of cancer, it also impacts in a negative manner on cancer survival rates. So in case you are fighting with the diseases try to cut down on the animal fat. This will help you enhance your life expectancy and survival time.

• There is another study done that shows that vegetarians have a better and stronger immune system that people that eat meat. One of them even stated that in vegetarians the immune cell activity is in fact doubled in vegetarians. Having a stronger immune system can surely help fighting cancer and tumor cells better.

• There is this one important study that needs a mention right here. It used the blood of cancer patients, some of which were on a standard diet and the other that was on a vegan diet. Then it was observed to see which group was better able to suppress the growth of cancer cells in the laboratory. The results were surprising as the blood of vegan patients was actually eight times better at suppressing the growth of cancer cells.

Bottom Line:

Certainly, the vegan diet for cancer patients has some hope and benefits for the people. Although a lot more studies need to be done. But whatever results that have been observed till now, indicate that being on a plant-based diet will help those suffering from the disease and with prevention as well.

Read more :

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8 Surprisingly Harsh Truths That Prove “No Vegan is a True Vegan”:

The Incredible Intermittent Fasting benefits:

How To Become Vegan Step By Step: Everything You Need To Know About Vegan Lifestyle:

Sources of information:

http://www.aicr.org/patients-survivors/healthy-or-harmful/vegetarian-and-vegan.html

Study finds vegan blood is 8 times more effective at killing cancer cells

https://www.karger.com/Article/FullText/337301

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23169929