Something as simple and natural as a daily apple may help in the fight against breast cancer.

According to research scientist Rui Hai Liu, M.D., Ph.D., of Cornell University, the results are favorable. His research program at Cornell University focuses on diet and cancer, and the effect of functional foods on chronic disease, cardiovascular disease, and aging.

In a recent paper published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, Liu’s study demonstrated that whole apple extracts effectively inhibited mammary cancer growth in rats, therefore leading him and his team to believe that apples may very well be an effective strategy for cancer protection. Especially good to learn as apples are major contributors of phytochemicals in human diets.

In an interview with the American Federation for Aging Research, Liu said he and his colleagues were able to show that phytochemicals in fresh apples could greatly inhibit the growth of liver and colon cancer cells.

Specifically, his research showed that 50 mg of apple extracts taken from the skins, inhibited colon cancer cells by 43 percent. And apple flesh extracts inhibited the colon cancer cells by 29 percent.

The same dosage of apple extracts with skins, he said,inhibited liver cancer cells by 57 percent, and the extracts inhibited liver cancer cells by 40 percent.

Liu’s team also treated rats with a known mammary carcinogen, and were able to block mammary cancer formation. This is the first study of the effects of apples on cancer prevention in animals.

Liu said that while there is a good chance it will work in humans, they still have to confirm this premise with additional tests. But why wait for the results? An apple a day is a healthy way to get a head start.

Image: Energetic Spirit