Foods to Eat & Enjoy:

• Eat a diet rich in fruit, vegetables, beans and whole grains.
• Follow the 80:20 rule.
• The lower you eat in the food chain, the more you will reduce your risk of breast, bowel and prostate cancer and also your risk of heart disease and diabetes.
• Avoid smoking and drink alcohol in small amounts, especially if you are a woman.
• Start your day with a warm glass of fresh lemon water
• Make yourself a green smoothie regularly and sip slowly. ( blend kale, spinach, lemon, mint, ginger, banana and an apple along with some flaxseeds and wheatgrass)

• Spinach, in salad or cooked (Helps vision, delays cataracts)
• Tomatoes, cooked better than raw, – aim for at least one serving a day (prostate problems and reduces cancer because of lycopenes)
• Berries, esp blueberries, raspberries – antioxidants
• Broccoli, mushrooms , garlic – antioxidants + cardio protective
• Drink 2 litres of water, green tea – anti aging
• Pomegranates/pomegranate juice better than red wine
• Dark Chocolate 70% at least – a few small squares, rich in iron / mood elevator
• Porridge oats (healthiest and the most filling breakfast)
  • Take 4 tablespoons of porridge oats (not easy cook variety but organic unprocessed oats) in 1 cup of soy milk in a deep bowl, microwave for 2 minutes at high power, add hot water or more soy milk as needed, add almonds or pecans, fresh berries, banana or apple, raisins on top
• Daily handful of nuts and seeds, unsalted, Linseed oil or powder
• Aim for 10 portions of fruit and veg daily (80 grams one portion)
• RAINBOW COLOUR veg /fruit(green, orange, red, yellow etc)

Other Measures

• Try and avoid dairy – too many hormones, implicated in breast and ovarian and prostate cancer
• Soya, rice / oat milk, tofu excellent and safe for all ages/ both sexes
• Exercise regularly – combine aerobics and weights
  • 30 min of walking daily, Park as far as possible
  • Avoid the lift, do housework with gusto!
  • Gardening and DIY
  • Sport - swimming, tennis, anything that you enjoy
  • Take up Yoga, karate or Tai Chi
  • Meet up with friends regularly, Spend time with family
• Avoid Saturated and Trans Fats – crisps, biscuits, cakes
• Avoid Red Meat – eat cheat meats – Turkey, bacon etc from soya, available in health food shops, taste the same without the sat fats
• EAT – brown pasta, brown rice, seeded bread, salads, beans
• LEARN COOKING NEW DISHES
• Work on 80:20 rule that is eat well majority of the time

Recommended books

• Your life in your hands – Understanding, preventing and overcoming Breast cancer, by Professor Jane Plant

Nitu Bajekal, Consultant, Barnet Hospital, March 2014