5 Ways To Beat Cancer (And Other Diseases)

10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

A Systematic Approach To Healthy Eating

Dr. William Li, known for ways to beat cancer and other diseases, in front of a blue background.

This is Dr. William Li. He’s a physician, cancer researcher, and educator. He also founded the Angiogenesis Foundation back in 1994.

We recently reviewed one of his books, “Eat To Beat Disease”.

He has another book that we haven’t reviewed at time of writing, “Eat To Beat Your Diet“, which you might like to check out.

What does he want us to know?

He wants us to know how to eat to beat cancer and other diseases, by means of five specific angles:

Angiogenesis

This is about replacing blood vessels, which of course happens all the time, but it becomes a problem when it is feeding a cancer in the process.

Here, based on Dr. Li’s work, is what can be done about it:

A List of Anti-Angiogenic Foods for a Cancer-Fighting Diet

Regeneration

Generally speaking, we want to replace healthy cells early, because if we wait until they get damaged, then that damage will be copied forwards. As well as intermittent fasting, there are other things we can do to promote this—even, Dr. Li’s research shows, for stem cells:

Doctor’s Tip: Regeneration (stem cells)—one of your body’s five defense systems

Microbiome health

Healthy gut, healthy rest of the body. We’ve written about this before:

Making Friends With Your Gut (You Can Thank Us Later)

DNA protection

DNA gets unravelled and damaged with age, the telomere caps get shorter, and mistakes get copied forward. So there more we can protect our DNA, the longer we can live healthily. There are many ways to do this, but Dr. Li was one of the first to bring to light the DNA-protecting benefits of kiwi fruit:

Kiwi: A Darling for DNA

Immunity

Paradoxically, what’s good for your immune system (making it stronger) also helps to protect against autoimmune diseases (for most people, for the most part).

In short: it’s good to have an immune system that’s powerful not just in its counterattacks, but also in its discerning nature. There are dietary and other lifestyle approaches to both, and they’re mostly the same things:

Beyond Supplements: The Real Immune-Boosters!

and thus see also:

Keep Inflammation At Bay

Want to know more?

You might enjoy his blog or podcast, and here’s his TED talk:

!

Want to watch it, but not right now? Bookmark it for later

Enjoy!

Don’t Forget…

Did you arrive here from our newsletter? Don’t forget to return to the email to continue learning!

Recommended

  • Lifestyle vs Multiple Sclerosis & More
  • Here’s how to help protect babies and kids from RSV
    RSV surge threatens infants: Learn symptoms, vaccinations during pregnancy, and prevention of this dangerous respiratory virus.

Learn to Age Gracefully

Join the 98k+ American women taking control of their health & aging with our 100% free (and fun!) daily emails:

  • Almonds vs Macadamias – Which is Healthier?

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Our Verdict

    When comparing almonds to macadamias, we picked the almonds.

    Why?

    It’s not just our pro-almonds bias:

    In terms of macros, almonds have 3x the protein and as well as more fiber and carbs, the ratio of which latter two give almonds the lower glycemic index, while macadamias have more total fat, and 4x the saturated fat percentage. All in all, we say this is a win for almonds in this category.

    In the category of vitamins, almonds have more of vitamins B2, B3, B9, E, and choline, while macadamias have more of vitamins B1, B5, B6, and C. A modest 5:4 win for almonds, unless we consider that almonds have more than 47x as much vitamin E (almonds are an exceptionally good source of vitamin E), in which case, a stronger win for almonds.

    When it comes to minerals, almonds have more calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, selenium, and zinc, while macadamias have more manganese. A very clear win for almonds.

    Adding up the sections makes for a convincing overall win for almonds, but by all means enjoy either or both; diversity is good!

    Want to learn more?

    You might like:

    Why You Should Diversify Your Nuts!

    Enjoy!

    Share This Post

  • Improve Your Insulin Sensitivity!

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    We’ve written before about blood sugar management, for example:

    10 Ways To Balance Blood Sugars ← this one really is the most solid foundation possible; if you do nothing else, do these 10 things!

    And as for why we care:

    Good (Or Bad) Health Starts With Your Blood

    …because the same things that cause type 2 diabetes, go on to cause many other woes, with particularly strong comorbidities in the case of Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias, as well as heart disease of various kinds, and a long long laundry list of immune dysfunctions / inflammatory disorders in general.

    In short, if you can’t keep your blood sugars even, the rest of your health will fall like so many dominoes.

    Getting a baseline

    Are you counting steps? Counting calories? Monitoring your sleep? Heart rate zones? These all have their merits:

    But something far fewer people do unless they have diabetes or are very enthusiastic about personal health, is to track blood sugars:

    Here’s how: Track Your Blood Sugars For Better Personalized Health

    And for understanding some things to watch out for when using a continuous glucose monitor:

    Continuous Glucose Monitors Without Diabetes: Pros & Cons

    Writer’s anecdote: I decided to give one a try for a few months, and so far it has been informative, albeit unexciting. It seems that with my diet (mostly whole-foods plant based, though I do have a wholegrain wheat product about twice per week (usually: flatbread once, pasta once) which is… Well, we could argue it’s whole-food plant based, but let’s be honest, it’s a little processed), my blood sugars don’t really have spikes at all; the graph looks more like gently rolling low hills (which is good). However! Even so, by experimenting with it, I can see for myself what differences different foods/interventions make to my blood sugars, which is helpful, and it also improves my motivation for intermittent fasting. It also means that if I think “hmm, my energy levels are feeling low; I need a snack” I can touch my phone to my arm and find out if that is really the reason (so far, it hasn’t been). I expect that as I monitor my blood sugars continuously and look at the data frequently, I’ll start to get a much more intuitive feel for my own blood sugars, in much the same way I can generally intuit my hormone levels correctly after years of taking-and-testing.

    So much for blood sugars. Now, what about insulin?

    Step Zero

    If taking care of blood sugars is step one, then taking care of insulin is step zero.

    Often’s it’s viewed the other way around: we try to keep our blood sugars balanced, to reduce the need for our bodies to produce so much insulin that it gets worn out. And that’s good and fine, but…

    To quote what we wrote when reviewing “Why We Get Sick” last month:

    ❝Dr. Bikman makes the case that while indeed hyper- or hypoglycemia bring their problems, mostly these are symptoms rather than causes, and the real culprit is insulin resistance, and this is important for two main reasons:

    1. Insulin resistance occurs well before the other symptoms set in (which means: it is the thing that truly needs to be nipped in the bud; if your fasting blood sugars are rising, then you missed “nipping it in the bud” likely by a decade or more)
    2. Insulin resistance causes more problems than “mere” hyperglycemia (the most commonly-known result of insulin resistance) does, so again, it really needs to be considered separately from blood sugar management.

    This latter, Dr. Bikman goes into in great detail, linking insulin resistance (even if blood sugar levels are normal) to all manner of diseases (hence the title).

    You may be wondering: how can blood sugar levels be normal, if we have insulin resistance?

    And the answer is that for as long as it is still able, your pancreas will just faithfully crank out more and more insulin to deal with the blood sugar levels that would otherwise be steadily rising. Since people measure blood sugar levels much more regularly than anyone checks for actual insulin levels, this means that one can be insulin resistant for years without knowing it, until finally the pancreas is no longer able to keep up with the demand—then that’s when people finally notice.❞

    You can read the full book review here:

    Why We Get Sick: The Hidden Epidemic at the Root of Most Chronic Disease and How to Fight It – by Dr. Benjamin Bikman

    Now, testing for insulin is not so quick, easy, or accessible as testing for glucose, but it can be worthwhile to order such a test—because, as discussed, your insulin levels could be high even while your blood sugars are still normal, and it won’t be until the pancreas finally reaches breaking point that your blood sugars show it.

    So, knowing your insulin levels can help you intervene before your pancreas reaches that breaking point.

    We can’t advise on local services available for ordering blood tests (because they will vary depending on location), but a simple Google search should suffice to show what’s available in your region.

    Once you know your insulin levels (or even if you don’t, but simply take the principled position that improving insulin sensitivity will be good regardless), you can set about managing them.

    Insulin sensitivity is important, because the better it is (higher insulin sensitivity), the less insulin the pancreas has to make to tidy up the same amount of glucose into places that are good for it to go—which is good. In contrast, the worse it is (higher insulin resistance), the more insulin the pancreas has to make to do the same blood sugar management. Which is bad.

    What to do about it

    We imagine you will already be eating in a way that is conducive to avoiding or reversing type 2 diabetes, but for anyone who wants a refresher,

    See: How To Prevent And Reverse Type 2 Diabetes

    …which yes, as well as meaning eating/avoiding certain foods, does recommend intermittent fasting. For anyone who wants a primer on that,

    See: Intermittent Fasting: Methods & Benefits

    There are also drugs you may want to consider:

    Metformin Without Diabetes, For Weight-Loss & More

    And “nutraceuticals” that sound like drugs, for example:

    Glutathione’s Benefits: The Usual And The Unique ← the good news is, it’s found in several common foods

    You may have heard the hype about “nature’s Ozempic”, and berberine isn’t exactly that (works in mostly different ways), but its benefits do include improving insulin sensitivity:

    Berberine For Metabolic Health

    Lastly, while eating for blood sugar management is all well and good, do be aware that some things affect insulin levels without increased blood sugar levels. So even if you’re using a CGM, you may go blissfully unaware of an insulin spike, because there was no glucose spike on the graph—and in contrast, there could even be a dip in blood sugar levels, if you consumed something that increased insulin levels without providing glucose at the same time, making you think “I should have some carbs”, which visually on the graph would even out your blood sugars, but invisibly, would worsen the already-extant insulin spike.

    Read more about this: Strange Things Happening In The Islets Of Langerhans: When Carbs, Proteins, & Fats Switch Metabolic Roles

    Now, since you probably can’t test your insulin at a moment’s notice, the way to watch out for this is “hmm, I ate some protein/fats (delete as applicable) without carbs and my blood sugars dipped; I know what’s going on here”.

    Want to know more?

    We heartily recommend the “Why We Get Sick” book we linked above, as this focuses on insulin resistance/sensitivity itself!

    However, a very good general primer on blood sugar management (and thus, by extension, at least moderately good insulin management), is:

    Glucose Revolution: The Life-Changing Power of Balancing Your Blood Sugar – by Jessie Inchauspé

    Enjoy!

    Share This Post

  • Artichoke vs Asparagus – Which is Healthier?

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Our Verdict

    When comparing artichoke to asparagus, we picked the artichoke.

    Why?

    Both are great and it was close!

    In terms of macros, artichoke has a little more protein and around 3x the carbs and fiber: the ratio there means that both vegetables have an identical glycemic index, so we’ll go with the “most food per food” reckoning of nutritional density, and call it for the artichoke.

    When it comes to vitamins, artichoke has more of vitamins B3, B5, B6, B7, B9, C, and choline, while asparagus has more of vitamins A, B1, B2, E, and K. Both very respectable nutritional sets, but artichoke gets a marginal 6:5 win on strength of numbers.

    In the category of minerals, artichoke has more calcium, copper, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, and potassium, while asparagus has more iron, selenium, and zinc. A clearer 6:3 win for artichoke this time.

    Once again, both of these are great foods, so by all means enjoy either or both. But if you’re looking for the nutritionally densest option, it’s the artichoke!

    Want to learn more?

    You might like to read:

    What’s Your Plant Diversity Score?

    Take care!

    Share This Post

Related Posts

  • Lifestyle vs Multiple Sclerosis & More
  • Pinch Of Nom, Everyday Light – by Kay Featherstone and Kate Allinson

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    One of the biggest problems with “light”, “lean” or “under this many calories” cookbooks tends to be the portion sizes perhaps had sparrows in mind. Not so, here!

    Nor do they go for the other usual trick, which is giving us something that’s clearly not a complete meal. All of these recipes are for complete meals, or else come with a suggestion of a simple accompaniment that will still keep the dish under 400kcal.

    The recipes are packed with vegetables and protein, perfect for keeping lean while also making sure you’re full until the next meal.

    Best of all, they are indeed rich and tasty meals—there’s only so many times one wants salmon with salad, after all. There are healthy-edition junk food options, too! Sausage and egg muffins, fish and chips, pizza-loaded fries, sloppy dogs, firecracker prawns, and more!

    Most of the meals are quite quick and easy to make, and use common ingredients.

    Nearly half are vegetarian, and gluten-free options involve only direct simple GF substitutions. Similarly, turning a vegetarian meal into a vegan meal is usually not rocket science! Again, quick and easy substitutions, à la “or the plant-based milk of your choice”.

    Recipes are presented in the format: ingredients, method, photo. Super simple (and no “chef’s nostalgic anecdote storytime” introductions that take more than, say, a sentence to tell).

    All in all, a fabulous addition to anyone’s home kitchen!

    Get your copy of “Pinch of Nom—Everyday Light” from Amazon today!

    Don’t Forget…

    Did you arrive here from our newsletter? Don’t forget to return to the email to continue learning!

    Learn to Age Gracefully

    Join the 98k+ American women taking control of their health & aging with our 100% free (and fun!) daily emails:

  • Achieve optimal fitness after 40 with the support of a dedicated community of subscribers. Discover effective strategies, including incorporating 10 almonds into your daily routine, to enhance your overall health and well

    10almonds Subcribers Take The Wheel!

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    ❓ Q&A With 10almonds Subscribers!

    Q: What kind of salt is best for neti pots?

    A: Non-iodised salt is usually recommended, but really, any human-safe salt is fine. By this we mean for example:

    • Sodium chloride (like most kitchen salts),
    • Potassium chloride (as found in “reduced sodium” kitchen salts), or
    • Magnesium sulfate (also known as epsom salts).

    Q: You talked about spearmint as reducing testosterone levels, what about ginseng for increasing them?

    A: Hormones are complicated and often it’s not a simple matter of higher or lower levels! It can also be a matter of…

    • how your body converts one thing into another
    • how your body responds (or not) to something according to how the relevant hormone’s receptors are doing
    • …and whether there’s anything else blocking those receptors.

    All this to say: spearmint categorically is an anti-androgen, but the mechanism of action remains uncertain.

    Panax ginseng, meanwhile, is one of the most well-established mysteries in herbal medicine.

    Paradoxically, it seems to improve both male and female hormonal regulation, despite being more commonly associated with the former.

    But it also…

    Bottom line: Panax ginseng is popularly taken to improve natural hormone function, a task at which it appears to excel.

    Scientists are still working out exactly how it does the many things it appears to do.

    Progress has been made, and it clearly is science rather than witchcraft, but there are still far more unanswered questions than resolved ones!

    Q: I like that the quizzes (I’ve done two so far) give immediate results , with no “give us your email to get your results”. Thanks!

    A: You’re welcome! That’s one of the factors that influences what things we include here! Our mission statement is “to make health and productivity crazy simple”, and the unwritten part of that is making sure to save your time and energy wherever we reasonably can!

    Q: Do you know if adrafanil is as good as modafinil? It seems to be a lot cheaper for the same result?

    A: Adrafinil is the pro-drug of modafinil. What this means is that if you take it, your own liver will use it to make modafinil inside you. So the end result is chemically the same drug.

    As to whether it’s as good, it depends what you need. It’s worth noting that anything that taxes liver function can be harmful if you take too much, and/or your liver is already strained for some reason.

    If in doubt, consult a doctor! And if it’s something that’s accessible to you, a recent lipids test (a kind of blood test that checks your liver health) is always a good thing to have.

    Q: Would love to see your take on polyphasic sleep!

    A: Watch this space

    Don’t Forget…

    Did you arrive here from our newsletter? Don’t forget to return to the email to continue learning!

    Learn to Age Gracefully

    Join the 98k+ American women taking control of their health & aging with our 100% free (and fun!) daily emails:

  • Sleep wrinkles are real. Here’s how they leave their mark

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    You wake up, stagger to the bathroom and gaze into the mirror. No, you’re not imagining it. You’ve developed face wrinkles overnight. They’re sleep wrinkles.

    Sleep wrinkles are temporary. But as your skin loses its elasticity as you age, they can set in.

    Here’s what you can do to minimise the chance of them forming in the first place.

    How side-sleeping affects your face

    Your skin wrinkles for a number of reasons, including ageing, sun damage, smoking, poor hydration, habitual facial expressions (such as grinning, pouting, frowning, squinting) and sleeping positions.

    When you sleep on your side or stomach, your face skin is squeezed and crushed a lot more than if you sleep on your back. When you sleep on your side or stomach, gravity presses your face against the pillow. Your face skin is distorted as your skin is stretched, compressed and pulled in all directions as you move about in your sleep.

    You can reduce these external forces acting on the face by sleeping on your back or changing positions frequently.

    Doctors can tell which side you sleep on by looking at your face

    In a young face, sleep wrinkles are transient and disappear after waking.

    Temporary sleep wrinkles can become persistent with time and repetition. As we age, our skin loses elasticity (recoil) and extensibility (stretch), creating ideal conditions for sleep wrinkles or lines to set in and last longer.

    The time spent in each sleeping position, the magnitude of external forces applied to each area of the face, as well as the surface area of contact with the pillow surface, also affects the pattern and rate of sleep wrinkle formation.

    Skin specialists can often recognise this. People who favour sleeping on one side of their body tend to have a flatter face on their sleeping side and more visible sleep lines.

    Can a night skincare routine avoid sleep wrinkles?

    Collagen and elastin are two primary components of the dermis (inner layer) of skin. They form the skin structure and maintain the elasticity of skin.

    Skin structure
    The dermis is the inner layer of skin. mermaid3/Shutterstock

    Supplementing collagen through skincare routines to enhance skin elasticity can help reduce wrinkle formation.

    Hyaluronic acid is a naturally occurring molecule in human bodies. It holds our skin’s collagen and elastin in a proper configuration, stimulates the production of collagen and adds hydration, which can help slow down wrinkle formation. Hyaluronic acid is one of the most common active ingredients in skincare creams, gels and lotions.

    Moisturisers can hydrate the skin in different ways. “Occlusive” substances produce a thin layer of oil on the skin that prevents water loss due to evaporation. “Humectants” attract and hold water in the skin, and they can differ in their capacity to bind with water, which influences the degree of skin hydration.

    Do silk pillowcases actually make a difference?

    Bed with silk sheets and pillowcases
    Can they help? New Africa/Shutterstock

    Silk pillowcases can make a difference in wrinkle formation, if they let your skin glide and move, rather than adding friction and pressure on a single spot. If you can, use silk sheets and silk pillows.

    Studies have also shown pillows designed to reduce mechanical stress during sleep can prevent skin deformations. Such a pillow could be useful in slowing down and preventing the formation of certain facial wrinkles.

    Sleeping on your back can reduce the risk of sleep lines, as can a nighttime routine of moisturising before sleep.

    Otherwise, lifestyle choices and habits, such quitting smoking, drinking plenty of water, a healthy diet (eating enough vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, healthy fats, yogurt and other fermented foods) and regular use of sunscreens can help improve the appearance of the skin on our face.

    Yousuf Mohammed, Dermatology researcher, The University of Queensland; Khanh Phan, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Frazer Institute, The University of Queensland, and Vania Rodrigues Leite E. Silva, Honorary Associate Professor, Frazer Institute, The University of Queensland

    This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

    Don’t Forget…

    Did you arrive here from our newsletter? Don’t forget to return to the email to continue learning!

    Learn to Age Gracefully

    Join the 98k+ American women taking control of their health & aging with our 100% free (and fun!) daily emails: