Last month, I told you the incredible story of Nobel Laureate Otto Warburg and the one thing all cancers have in common — a lack of oxygen. Since you read that story, Ive talked with six more people who were newly diagnosed with cancer. Every single one of these cancers did not have to happen.
How can I be so sure? After all, cancer kills one in four Americans. Well, this month, I am going to show you one of the most amazing cancer preventives Ive ever seen. It works so well that Id lay odds it would have stopped all six of these cancers before they started.
No matter what you do, you cant avoid chemicals that cause cancer. But according to Warburg, carcinogens will cause cancer through hypoxia (low oxygen) induced by chronic inflammation.
So how can you keep the tissues in your body flooded with oxygen? Oxygen therapy is one way. Whether its hyperbaric oxygen, IV hydrogen peroxide, or exercise with oxygen therapy, these therapies can work wonders. I use them regularly to help prevent and fight cancer. But there is an even easier way to saturate your tissues with oxygen. And you do not have to visit your doctor to do it.
New information has come out that shows how fatty acids actually oxygenate your cells. That is right! Fatty acids are an oxygen therapy.
Fatty acids are vital for the health of your cell membranes. Membranes are the skin of your cells. The function of your membranes totally depends on the composition of the fatty acids that are available. The more and better the fatty acids, the more flexible (or fluid) they are. This is important. Membranes need to be flexible. Think of the softness and suppleness of your skin. Would you want it stiff and inflexible? Neither do your cells.
Stiff membranes do not allow nutrients to pass into the cell. Stiffness also blocks other critical membrane functions, especially for your red blood cells. Red cells have to squeeze through capillaries, which have a smaller diameter than the cells themselves.
If the membranes of your red blood cells are stiff, they will not be able to pass through your capillaries (smallest blood vessels). Your heart will have to work harder to push them through. High blood pressure can result.
Red blood cells carry oxygen to your body. So stiff membranes also can result in less oxygen getting into your cells. (That is where the cancer connection begins.)
So how can you increase the flexibility of your cell membranes?
The key lies with the kinds of fat you eat. For instance, saturated fats are stiff. You know that because saturated fat has a high melting point. These cause your membranes to stiffen. But highly unsaturated fats, such as omega-6 and omega-3 oils are liquid at any temperature above freezing. Monounsaturated olive oil (oleic acid) falls in between.
However, stiffness is not the only thing we have to look at. We also need to see how well a fat binds with oxygen. The better a fat binds with oxygen, the better it can deliver oxygen to your cells.
Saturated fats, which we know are stiff, do not bind with oxygen at all. So heres another reason to stay away from saturated fats. They cause your cell membranes to become stiff and they do not deliver any oxygen to your cells.
Both omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, on the other hand, bind with oxygen very well. But, surprisingly, omega-6 fatty acids bind to oxygen even better than omega-3s. Omega-6 fatty acids are like a magnet for oxygen. They pick it up and release it easily. That permits ideal oxygen diffusion.
The most common omega-6 fatty acid is the essential fatty acid linoleic acid. Linoleic acid picks up oxygen so effectively, it actually picks up twice as much as olive oil. So if you are getting more olive oil in your diet than linoleic acid, you are cutting your oxygen diffusion in half. While olive oil is better than most oils, this shows that olive oil alone is NOT your anti-cancer answer.
Similarly, if your red cells are loaded with saturated fats, their membranes will impair their ability to load and unload oxygen. If your red cells are loaded with linoleic acid, that fatty acid will easily pick up oxygen. It will allow it inside the red cell for binding. And, as your red cell winds its way through your capillaries, that oxygen will move out more easily into your tissues. There will be an abundance of oxygen for your oxygen-thirsty cells.
So how does that relate to cancer? We already know that cancer is clearly linked to a long-term chronic oxygen deficiency. If your red blood cells are packed with saturated fat, it will rob your cells of oxygen they so desperately need. That can set you up for the disease.
Any reduction in oxygen delivery and consumption will increase your risk of all diseases, and particularly cancer. If your cells lack oxygen, a carcinogen or an infection can damage the cell and it wont have the oxygen it needs to repair itself. A damaged cell can eventually turn cancerous.
If you have read this newsletter for very long, you are probably sitting there saying, But Dr. Rowen, you have said most Americans get too many omega-6s in their diet. Now you are telling us we need more omega-6s. What gives?
The answer to that comes from Brian Peskin, a masters graduate of MIT. Hes the analyst who uncovered most of this information about omega-6s. When I spoke with Peskin, I told him about this concern. After all, the average American intake ratio of omega-6s to omega-3s is somewhere between 12:1 and 20:1 (most are closer to 12:1). And I believe it should be closer to 4:1.
Peskin agrees with me. But he says that half of the omega-6 intake in this country comes from trans omega-6 fatty acids from processed foods. In your body, these act like saturated fats, and can be taken out of the 12:1 equation. So the average American is taking in a ratio of 6:1. To get to the ideal 4:1 ratio, Peskin recommends a supplement of 2:1 omega-6 to omega-3, which will nudge the average American from the abnormal 6:1 toward the ideal 4:1.
Unfortunately, your typical fish oil does not have this ratio. That is why some studies show fish oils are ineffective for certain conditions. While fish oils have many tremendous benefits, its not the best cancer preventive. This is also why I recommend plant-based omega oils (such as flaxseed and hemp oil) in addition to fish oils. And obviously, saturated fat is not oxygens friend.
Hemp seed oil has the ideal ratio of essential fatty acids. Hulled hemp seeds and hemp oil are available at most health food stores.
Flax oil is next best. Green leafy vegetables, nuts, and seeds will have quality omega-6s and omega-3s, but not perhaps in ideal ratios. Grass-fed beef and organic range-fed chicken are good animal sources as well. But, again, not in the ideal ratios.
The only other supplement I know of that has this ideal 2:1 omega-6 to omega-3 ratio is called Yes EFA. While the other oils are very good for you and have definite value in keeping you healthy, Yes EFA is a must for cancer prevention. You can order it through Healthy Resolve by calling 800-728-2288.
If you would like more information on how essential fatty acids can help you prevent cancer, I strongly recommend you read Brian Peskin’s book The Hidden Story of Cancer. You can order his books and read more of his information on fatty acids by visiting the Internet.
The best strategy to survive cancer is to prevent it before it develops — not to wait for it to come and then treat it. Act now to lower your cancer risk with the simplest of preventive strategies — fatty acid balance!
Ref: Eur J Appl. Phys, (1995) 72; J. Nutr. 1998 September.