Can Strawberries Reverse the Development of Esophageal Cancer?

Esophageal cancer joins
pancreatic cancer as one of the gravest diagnoses imaginable. The five-year
survival rate is less than 20 percent, with most people dying within the first year after diagnosis. This underscores the need to prevent,
stop, or reverse the disease process as early as possible.
Researchers decided to put
berries to the test. In a randomized clinical trial of powdered strawberries in
patients with precancerous lesions in their esophagus, subjects ate one to two
ounces of freeze-dried strawberries every day for six months—that’s the daily
equivalent of about a pound of fresh strawberries.
All of the study participants
started out with either mild or moderate
Most of these precancerous
lesions either regressed from moderate to mild or disappeared entirely. Half of
those on the high-dose strawberry treatment walked away disease-free.
In addition to keeping you regular, fiber binds to toxins, such as lead and mercury, and flushes them away (pun intended!). Our bodies were designed to expect an ever-flowing fiber stream, so it dumps such unwanted waste products as excess cholesterol and estrogen into the intestines, assuming they will be swept away. But if you aren’t constantly filling your bowels with plant foods, the only natural source of fiber, unwanted waste products can get reabsorbed and undermine your body’s attempts at detoxifying itself.
Only 3 percent of Americans may even reach the recommended minimum daily intake of fiber, making it one of the most widespread nutrient deficiencies in the United States.