Super Foods and Cancer
June 29, 2021Super Foods and Cancer
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Information
Courtney McGowan, Dietitian, discusses what super foods are and how to incorporate them into your diet.
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- 00:00Hello to all you amazing cancer survivors.
- 00:04My name is Courtney McGowan.
- 00:05I'm a registered dietitian at the
- 00:07Smile Care Center in Guilford,
- 00:08and today I wanted to take a few
- 00:10minutes to talk to you about superfoods.
- 00:13The term superfood has become a popular
- 00:15marketing term that implies a particular
- 00:18food has exceptional health benefits.
- 00:20Foods that are often marketed this
- 00:22way include kale, spinach, tomatoes,
- 00:23berries, garlic, and broccoli,
- 00:25to name a few.
- 00:27Foods deemed as Super Foods are
- 00:29typically healthy plant based foods,
- 00:30but it should be noted that there
- 00:32are no set criteria of food must
- 00:34meet to be labeled as a superfood,
- 00:36which is why it's considered more of a
- 00:39marketing term rather than indicating that
- 00:41it meets a set of nutrition criteria.
- 00:43That being said, these foods should
- 00:45absolutely be eaten regularly,
- 00:46but should be done so as part
- 00:49of a well rounded diet,
- 00:51rich in all fruits and vegetables
- 00:53as well as whole grains like wheat,
- 00:55quinoa and barley.
- 00:56An lean protein like nuts,
- 00:58beans, seeds,
- 00:59poultry,
- 00:59fish and low fat dairy including yogurt.
- 01:02So often I meet people who are focused on
- 01:05eating from a short list of specific foods.
- 01:08Deemed superfoods and as a result,
- 01:10they eliminate many other foods
- 01:11that would further strengthen
- 01:13their cancer fighting ability.
- 01:14So rather than limit to a few
- 01:16foods deemed as superfoods,
- 01:18a better approach is setting
- 01:20a goal to eat the rainbow.
- 01:23Meaning that you focus on eating
- 01:25as many colors as you can from
- 01:27fruits and vegetables daily.
- 01:29I know this sounds like a simplistic message,
- 01:32but different plants contain different
- 01:34phyto nutrients and phytonutrients are
- 01:35naturally occurring compounds that
- 01:37give plant based foods their color,
- 01:39smell and flavor when we eat a
- 01:41variety of phyto nutrients it gives
- 01:43our body the fuel it needs to fend
- 01:45off cancer and other diseases by
- 01:48strengthening our immune system,
- 01:49reducing inflammation and decreasing the
- 01:52damage to cells that can cause cancer.
- 01:54But no single phyto nutrient
- 01:56can do this alone,
- 01:57and research suggests that it is
- 01:59the result of many phyto nutrients
- 02:01working together that gives us
- 02:03the strongest cancer protection.
- 02:05This means that the more color variety
- 02:07we eat from our plant based foods,
- 02:10the more phytonutrients we consume,
- 02:11resulting in the strongest protective
- 02:13effect to help keep cancer at Bay.
- 02:16So the next time at the grocery store,
- 02:18rather than limiting to the short
- 02:20list of foods marketed as superfoods,
- 02:23fill your grocery cart with a wide
- 02:25variety of colors from plant based foods.
- 02:27Be them fresh, frozen, dried,
- 02:29or even canned.
- 02:30Whatever is most accessible to you,
- 02:32and modify these as needed.
- 02:34Depending on what you're able to tolerate
- 02:37at any given point during your treatment.
- 02:40Hopefully you found these
- 02:42tips to be helpful today.
- 02:44Happy Cancer survivorship month.
- 02:45And remember that there are
- 02:47registered dietitians available
- 02:48at the smilow care centers.
- 02:49If you need any help with this along the way.