Laurel on Health Food

MSNBC featured a little “Go Green, Live Longer” article on how men can protect themselves against environmental toxins. Out of the four tips, three involved eating certain foods to help protect your body.

Protect Against Prostate Cancer

The U.S. uses approximately a billion pounds of pesticides every year (used mostly on our agriculture), and a 2007 study from Canada connected pesticide chemicals with cases of prostate cancer. Current numbers show that one in six men will get prostate cancer. Drink four to seven glasses of red wine a week to reduce your risk of prostate cancer by 48%.

Protect Against Diabetes

Research from Korea found that the toxic chemicals found in fish (PCBs) may increase your chance of getting diabetes. Currently, about 10.9 million men have diabetes. Bluefish and summer flounder have high levels of PCBs, so avoid them. Eat black sea bass, mahi, or skipjack tuna instead. Also, increase your fiber intake to reduce your diabetes risk by 30%.

Protect Against Heart Disease

Researchers from the University of Michigan found that fine particles emitted from cars, electricity generators, and power plants are causing a slew of heart problems. During this year alone, 1.1 million people in the U.S. are estimated to have a heart attack. Only half of those people will live through it. A 2007 study from Norway concluded that getting 300mg of anthocyanins a day reduces your risk of heart problems by up to 60%. What’s packed with anthocyanins? Berries like blueberries and blackberries.

This entry was posted on Sunday, August 3rd, 2008 at 1:34 pm and is filed under Health. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

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