Jacksonville's Neighborhood Garden

The Doctor's Office
Strawberries: red, sweet, delicious and ... chemotherapy?  Researchers have been feverishly studying strawberries for anti-cancer properties for years now and have documented some amazing findings.  In one experiment, researchers added berry extracts to cervical cancer cells growing in petri dishes demonstrating the ability of these extracts to stop growth of the cancer cells.  Of nearly a dozen berries, the strawberry extract was hands down the strongest cancer fighter.  A different group of scientists asked whether organic are better than conventionally grown strawberries, and found that indeed the organic berries were better able to stop breast and colon cancer cells.  But that's in a petri dish, what about in the human body?

In a phase 2 clinical trial a group of researchers fed the freeze dried equivalent of a pound of strawberries a day to patients with visible pre-cancerous lesions in their esophagus and witnessed 80% of the patients undergo reversal of their disease, and 50% of the patients were cured in 12 weeks!  For perspective, there is no other treatment that comes close to these amazing findings  

Interest in strawberries' anti-cancer effects in the complex arena of the living body has largely centered around a compound called ellagic acid.  This is because ellagic acid was found to be a potent inhibitor of angiogenesis, or the formation of new blood vessels.  Cancers hijack our bodies' angiogenesis mechanism to trick the body into growing it's own private blood supply.  The cancer's survival depends on these new blood vessels so a compound that can block this process should be able to choke off the nasty invader.  Many chemotherapeutic agents in use today attack the cancer this way, and aren't as potent as ellagic acid!  But before you run out to look for an ellagic acid supplement, it's important to know that there are hundreds of other compounds, or phytonutrients, in the strawberry which may also play a role in this dramatic reversal of cells gone awry, so the principle of getting your nutrients from the whole food is important!  Below is a quick salad that combines strawberries with another powerful anti-cancer food!  


Strawberry Spinach Salad
Prep time: 15 minutes  Serves: 6-8

Salad
1/2 cup slivered almonds
8 oz baby spinach leaves
9 oz fresh strawberries cut into quarters
1 TBSP sesame seeds
1/2 TBSP poppy seeds

Dressing
1 TBSP olive oil
2 TBSP lemon juice
1/2 TBSP honey
1 tsp low-sodium soy sauce
1 TBSP finely sliced fresh mint

1.*Optional: Preheat oven to 350. Place almonds onto oven tray and bake for 2-3 minutes to toast, checking regularly. Once lightly browned, remove and set aside to cool.

2. Combine spinach leaves, strawberries, toasted almonds, sesame seeds and poppy seeds in a bowl, and toss gently to combine.

Dressing
1. Place olive  oil, lemon juice, honey, soy sauce, and mint into a small sealed container, and shake well to combine. 

2. Drizzle over the salad and serve immediately.