Cancer: The healthy seed linked to an increased risk of cancer – ‘potent liver carcinogen’
Liver cancer: Expert discusses symptoms and treatments
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Those seeking to lower their cancer risk are often told that adherence to an anti-inflammatory diet is key. And an array of vegetables, fruits and seeds can deliver these effects. Sunflower seeds, which are packed with a plethora of vitamins and nutrients, are counted among cancer-fighting foods. As one study elucidates, byproducts of the sunflower seed may sometimes lead to adverse outcomes.
Sunflower is widely touted for its high concentrations of vitamin E, which is instrumental in helping protect cells against damage caused by free radicals.
It is widely believed the seeds help shield against cancer and assist in recovery from the disease – which is generally characterised by fatigue and weight loss.
In fact, the anti-inflammatory effects of sunflower seeds have proven beneficial in helping fight colon, prostate and breast cancer.
Certain by-products of the sunflower, however, may not be as beneficial to one’s health, according to previous studies.
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Researchers from Michigan State University in the US documented a frequent occurrence of aflatoxin – one of the most potent liver carcinogens known.
The findings of the 2017 study, published in Plos One, appeared to suggest that regular consumption of contaminated sunflower seeds may have the potential to cause liver cancer.
Aflatoxins are produced by Aspergillum molds and can infect corn, peanuts, pistachios and almonds.
Gale Strasburg, MSU food science and human nutrition professor, co-authored the study, which took place in Tanzania.
The researcher noted: “These high aflatoxin levels, in a commodity frequently consumed by the Tanzanian population, indicate that local authorities must implement interventions to prevent and control aflatoxin contamination along with the sunflower commodity value chain, to enhance food and feed safety in Tanzania.
“Follow-up research is needed to determine intake rates of sunflower seed products in humans and animals, to inform exposure assessments and to better understand the role of sunflower seeds in cakes as a dietary aflatoxin source.”
While analysing aflatoxin levels of seeds in different regions throughout Tanzania, in 2014 and 2015, the lead author of the study, Juma Mmongoyo, found nearly 60 percent of seed samples were contaminated with aflatoxins.
The researchers said the findings could potentially help save lives and reduce liver disease in areas where sunflowers and their byproducts are consumed.
While the risk was said to be greater for low-income countries, it was not limited to these regions.
In fact, the researchers noted that chronic exposure to aflatoxin caused an estimated 25,000-155,000 deaths worldwide each year.
Contamination with aflatoxin has been well studied in other crops, but the 2017 study was one of the first to link the toxin to sunflower seeds.
What’s more, sunflower oil, which ranks fourth in world oil production, has been advised against for women with breast cancer due to its higher levels of omega-6.
According to the website Food For Breast Cancer, patients have been found with higher levels of omega-6 in their breast tissue, compared to women without the disease.
Evidence is mounting that having a lower omega-6/omega-3 ratio is associated with a reduced risk of breast cancer.
Due to its high omega-6 content, sunflower oil can increase the ratio, thereby increasing the risk of the disease.
Both sunflower oil and its primary omega-3 fatty acids and linoleum acid have been linked to an increased risk for breast cancer in both human, and animal studies.
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