Food-based interventions for cancer management: An ayurvedic perspective

Abstract

Cancer remains the major cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide. Despite the billions of dollars spent on research each year, recent statistics indicate that overall cancer incidence has not changed significantly in the last half-century. Although modern science has made major strides in understanding cancer and its molecular basis, the knowledge about how to prevent or treat cancer still lags behind. Environmental carcinogenic agents, occupational environments, and dietary habits have been found to be associated with the majority of cancers. Age-adjusted cancer incidence in the Western world is much higher than that of the Eastern world. It is now believed that dietary habits could be one of the major contributing factors in the genesis of cancer. The optimal way to deal with any disease is by prevention, and this is particularly relevant for cancer. It has been observed that individuals consuming relatively large amounts of vegetables and fruits are at a decreased risk of cancer of many organs. Ayurveda, a traditional Indian medicine system, has been successful since ancient times at using natural drugs to prevent or suppress a variety of tumors using various lines of treatment. Ayurvedic texts emphasize ahara, proper diet, as vital for promoting health and well-being. Although this traditional medicine has been around for thousands of years, the scientific community has recently started to pay attention to it. Following Ayurvedic principles a new paradigm for food-based cancer prevention and management can be developed to reduce the burden of this malignant disease.