A person’s diet can directly impact their health and reduce or increase the risk of developing diseases like diabetes, hypertension, and cancer. While there is no preventive superfood that completely protects against cancer, certain foods have been known to reduce the risk of cancer, while others actually increase one’s risk of developing the disease.

Foods to reduce cancer risk are those that have a high amount of antioxidants. In addition to being mindful of one’s diet, one should also maintain a healthy lifestyle and avoid overly processed foods, fried foods, unhealthy fats, sugar, and refined carbohydrates.

Fruits and vegetables

Fruits and vegetables are important as they have plenty of antioxidants that help fight cancer. Carotenoids are nutrients that are present in brussels sprouts, carrots, squash and other dark green leafy vegetables, and green and yellow fruits. The addition of these foods to one’s diet is thought to lower the risk of developing lung, esophageal, mouth, larynx, and pharynx cancers.

A diet that is heavy on fruits reduces lung and stomach cancer risks while vegetables and fruits that are rich in Vitamin C reduce the risks of esophageal cancer. Tomatoes are rich in lycopene that is known for cancer-fighting properties. Cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage, broccoli, and cauliflower are loaded with sulforaphane, which has been proven to reduce the size of tumors in mice. Berries are particularly rich in minerals, fiber, and vitamins.

Apples and citrus fruits have been thought to have a cancer risk-reducing effect on certain types of cancers. Folate-rich foods are also recommended to boost cancer prevention rates. Grapes and grape juice contain resveratrol, which has inflammation-fighting properties that are thought to indirectly help prevent cancer. An easy rule of thumb to ensure that one is getting enough of varied beneficial nutrients that fight cancer is to include in one’s meal vegetables and fruits of varied colors as possible. One can boost vegetable and fruit intake by snacking on them in between meals and replacing dessert with fruit.

Cinnamon and turmeric

Cinnamon has been found to have properties that prevent the spread of cancer. The humble spice turmeric contains a chemical called curcumin that makes it one of the foods to reduce cancer risk. Adding this spice to one’s daily foods and increasing its absorption by using it with black pepper is a good tip for lowering the risk of cancer.

Nuts and legumes

The high fiber content in legumes and beans are thought to be the reason why some studies find that a high intake of these foods helps against colorectal cancer. Bean fiber has been found to help against breast cancer. Studies of people who consume nuts also found a correlation between high nut consumption and a reduced number of cancer-related deaths.

Fatty fish and fish oils
It has been found that some types of seafood are rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, potassium, and vitamin B. Freshwater fish, salmon, anchovies, and mackerel are good foods to reduce cancer risk. Fish oil and fish oil supplements also have a beneficial effect.