How Not to Die: Discover the Foods Scientifically Proven to Prevent and Reverse Disease

by Michael Greger

a high intake of fruits and vegetables is positively associated with good lung function.

Just one extra serving of fruit each day may translate into a 24 percent lower risk of dying from COPD.37

Adolescents living in areas where more starchy foods, grains, vegetables, and nuts were consumed were significantly less likely to exhibit chronic symptoms of wheezing, allergic rhinoconjunctivitis, and allergic eczema.47 Boys and

the prevalence of asthma and respiratory symptoms reportedly appears to be lower among populations eating more foods of plant origin.49

Supplements don’t appear to work.

importance of eating whole foods rather than trying to take isolated components or extracts in pill form.

Improvements in lung function and asthma control were evident only after subjects increased their actual fruit and vegetable intake, strongly suggesting that consuming whole foods is paramount.59

While the pathology of stroke and Alzheimer’s are different, one key factor unites them: Mounting evidence suggests that a healthy diet may help prevent them both.

a healthy diet can reduce stroke risk by reducing cholesterol and blood pressure while improving blood flow and antioxidant capacity.

high fiber intake appears to reduce the risk of cancers of the colon5 and breast,6 diabetes,7 heart disease,8 obesity,9 and premature death in general.

high fiber intake may also help ward off stroke.

It apparently doesn’t take much fiber to cut stroke risk. Increasing fiber intake by just seven grams a day may be associated with a 7 percent risk reduction.

How does fiber protect the brain?

We do know that fiber helps control your cholesterol14 and blood sugar levels,15 which can help reduce the amount of artery-clogging plaque in your brain’s blood vessels. High-fiber diets may also lower blood pressure,16 which reduces the risk of brain bleeds.

the best available science20 suggests you can minimize stroke risk by eating a minimum of 25 grams a day of soluble fiber (fiber that dissolves in water, typically found in beans, oats, nuts, and berries) and 47 daily grams of insoluble fiber (fiber that does not dissolve in water, found primarily in whole grains, such as brown rice

and whole wheat).

a 1,640 mg increase per day in potassium intake was associated with a 21 percent reduction in stroke risk.26

greens, beans, and sweet potatoes.28

Citrus fruit intake has been associated with reduced stroke risk—even more so than apples.29

When

it comes to food, the whole is often greater than the sum of its parts.

Lack of sleep, or even too much of it, is associated with increased stroke risk.32 But how much

Compared with people who slept an average of seven hours per night, subjects who got four hours of sleep or less, or ten hours or more, had roughly a 50 percent greater likelihood of dying from a stroke.

Higher stroke rates were found among individuals sleeping six hours or less, or nine hours or more. Those at lowest risk got around seven or eight hours of sleep a night.34

mitochondrial theory of aging—suggests that free radical damage to your cells’ power source, known as mitochondria, leads to a loss of cellular energy and function over time.

plants store the sun’s energy.

When you then eat the plant (or the animals who ate the plant), these electrons (in the form of carbohydrates, protein, and fat) are delivered to all your cells. Then your mitochondria take the plant’s power-packed electrons and use them as an energy source—that is, as fuel—and slowly release their energy.

your cells take these same high-energy electrons from the plants you eat and release their energy in a controlled manner, like a gas stove—just a little at a time until the energy is used up. Your body then passes these used-up electrons to an all-important

important molecule you may have heard of: oxygen. In fact, the way poisons like cyanide kill you is by preventing your body from giving up these spent electrons to oxygen.

About 1–2 percent40 of all high-energy electrons that pass through your cells leak out where oxygen can grab them. When oxygen gets its hands on a high-energy electron, it basically turns into the Hulk, changing from lowly oxygen into what’s called superoxide, a type of free radical. A free radical is what it sounds like—a molecule that can be unstable, out of control, and violently reactive. The superoxide is just pumped up with energy and can start smashing around the cell, knocking stuff over and tripping over your DNA.

When superoxide comes in contact with DNA, it can damage your genes, which, if not repaired, can cause mutations in your chromosomes that may lead to cancer.41 Thankfully, the body calls in its defense squad, known as antioxidants. They arrive at the scene and say, “Drop that electron!”

The superoxide fights back. “You want a piece of me, Mr. Vitamin C? Bring it!” So the antioxidants proceed to jump the superoxide and wrestle the supercharged electron away from it, leav...

the phenomenon by which oxygen molecules grab stray electrons and go crazy is called oxid...

the resulting cellular damage is what essentially causes aging. Aging and disease have been thought of...

Basically, the theory goes, we’re rusting.

You can slow down this oxidant process by eating foods containing lots of antioxidants.

Antioxidants can keep your food from oxidizing, and they may do the same inside your body.

One of the diseases antioxidant-rich foods may help prevent is stroke.

antioxidant supplements don’t appear to help.45 Mother Nature’s powers cannot be stuffed into a pill.

On average, plant foods contain sixty-four times more antioxidants than animal foods.

Even the least healthy plant food I can think of, good old American iceberg lettuce (which is 96 percent water!49), contains 17 units (daμmol using a modified FRAP assay) of antioxidant power.

simply strive to include a variety of fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices at every meal.

continuously flood your body with antioxidants to help ward off stroke and other age-related diseases.

The

food category that averages the most antioxidants is herbs and spices.

Plant-based meals tend to be rich in antioxidants on their own, but taking a moment to spice up your life may make your meal even healthier.

Antioxidant-rich diets appear to protect against stroke by preventing the circulation of oxidized fats in the bloodstream that can damage the sensitive walls of small blood vessels in the brain.52 They can also help decrease artery stiffness,53 prevent blood clots from forming,54 and lower blood

pressure55 and inflammation.

High-antioxidant fruits and vegetables, such as berries and greens, have been found to douse systemic inflammation significantly better than the same number of servings of more common low-antioxidant fruits and veggies, such as bananas and lettuce.58 The foods we choose make a difference.

Dead nerve cells cannot be brought back to life.