IN ALMOST every circle I circulate in--church, civil society, women’s group, barangay circles, and yes, even among farmworkers, there is at least one afflicted with cancer. Truth is, those with cancer that I have encountered, are not confined among adults. A recent case that really bothered me is an 11 year old suspected with having leukemia. Yet a larger number of cancer cases I encountered are with women friends, associates, and contacts with breast cancer.
Breast cancer has been linked particularly to the consumption of milk and cheese based on a study conducted by Ganmaa Davaasambuu, a Mongolian physician and a working scientist at the Harvard School of Public Health. As reported on December 7th, 2006 by the Harvard University Gazette: “One study compared diet and cancer rates in 42 counties, it showed that milk and cheese consumption are strongly correlated to the incidence of testicular cancer among men ages 20 to 39.
Rates were highest in places like Switzerland and Denmark, where cheese is a national food, and lowest in Algeria and other countries where dairy is not so widely consumed. “Within the Asian context, Ganmaa cited how “in the past 50 years in Japan, rising rates of dairy consumption are linked with rising death rates from prostate cancer - from near zero per 100,000 five decades ago to 7 per 100,000 today.”
Hormones in milk can be dangerous. As Ganmaa’s study reported, “the milk we drink today may not be nature’s perfect food. Butter, meat, eggs, milk, and cheese are implicated in higher rates of hormone-dependent cancers in general.” The main reason behind this is the “factory farming” of the cow that features corn rather than grass grazing of cows.
Feeding corn to cattle is, simply put, unnatural, and yet most of the store-bought (and restaurant-consumed) beef in the US is corn-fed. While corn is a cheaper feed and can ready a cow for slaughter much more quickly than a dainty diet of grass, it is pretty awful for the animal. Also, corn-fed beef is far less nutritious than grass-fed, which has higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins A, C, D, and E, and is lower in saturated fat.
Apart from the corn problem, there is the issue of Confined Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs), where cattle are raised in deplorable conditions, including being jammed together and standing in their own feces. Pastured cattle also produce far fewer pollutants than feedlot cattle, as their waste becomes fertilizer for new grass. Worse still is what was reported on February 11th, 2009 by the CBS News, “Link eyed between beef and cancer.”
Said news raised the issue of feedlots: “In feedlots across the country, beef cattle are given growth hormones to make them fatter faster, to save money. Now questions are being raised about one of the most widely-used hormones, Zeranol, a synthetic estrogen implanted in cattle. A series of tests done for the Pentagon show a possible link between breast cancer and Zeranol.”
Not only should we be concerned about what is “in” our foods, but we also need to be concerned about what is on the “outside” of our foods. Today’s modern foods are neatly packed and wrapped in plastics, styrofoam, tin, and aluminum. On March 30th, 2011 Discovery News reported, “Food packaging harbors harmful chemicals.” Plastic wrappers, food cans, and storage tubs deposit at least two potentially harmful chemicals into our food confirmed by a new study.
By cutting out containers, people can dramatically reduce their exposure to these toxins. The chemicals -- bisphenol A, or BPA, and a phthalate called DEHP -- are known to disrupt hormonal systems in the bodies of both animals and people, leading to developmental and reproductive problems, as well as cancers, heart disease and brain disorders. And both appear in a wide variety of food packaging materials. But when people in the new study avoided plastic and ate mostly fresh foods for just three days, the levels of these chemicals in their bodies dropped by more than 50 percent, and sometimes much more.
In other types of food packaging, on November 8th, 2010 Discovery News also reported, “Canned Food alert”—“traces of the worrisome chemical BPA in a wide variety of canned foods from supermarket shelves, found a new study. BPA is also present in products packaged in plastic and in one sample from the deli counter.
The study, which was the first to measure levels of BPA in grocery store foods in the United States, suggests that food -- especially canned food -- might be one major route at BPA uses to get into our bodies. BPA has been linked to all sorts of health concerns, including heart disease, cancers, and developmental problems.
One new study linked higher levels of BPA exposure with lower levels of sperm in men. On Feb 15th, 2010 USA Today reported that “the FDA said it has “some concerns” about health effects and encouraged people to limit their exposure. Research has linked the chemical to cancer, heart disease, Type-II diabetes, obesity, sexual dysfunction, and early-onset puberty. FDA officials said they are especially concerned about its developmental impact on fetuses, infants and young children. BPA, used to harden plastics, leaches from containers into food and drinks, even cold ones.
Based on recent studies, research and testing, what we often thought of as “healthy” foods, are not as “healthy” as we have been led to believe. The food processing manufacturers appear to be more concerned with profits than the health and well-being of their customers. Because the manufacturers and our governments ignore our concerns, it is going to be up to us to take charge of our nutrition and well-being. Today, we have been seduced to set our focus on television, the internet, sports, movies, games, or hobbies; food has been relegated to an afterthought.
Yet, there are a few alternatives to the chemically-laden foods available at our local supermarket. We can buy organic, which unfortunately because of the current economics of food production, is more costly. In Negros though, organic or natural food products have become more affordable, thanks to the provincial governments continuing support for organic farming, and the press for our province to become the organic country of the Philippines. Alternatively, we can grow and raise our own food, which is time-consuming and hard work. But it can and should be done, especially as we consider, the health of our family worth improving.
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For substantive discussion of issues raised here in this section, please read “FIGHTING SICKNESS: NATURAL & HERBAL WAY,” the book I wrote on the subject of Health & Wellness. Copies are available at Seacrest Foundation Bldg. 42-13th St. Hilado Extn. near Terra Dolce (beside PETRON Car Detail/Repair, China Car Display), and Negros Showroom, Robinsons.