The very best solution is to avoid getting these diseases in the first place. The key to both
preventing and reversing lifestyle-induced diseases is the same—a 90% or More plant-based
Nutrient Rich® diet.
Cancer
The World Health Organization (WHO) has estimated that dietary factors are linked to at least 30%
of all cancers in developed countries, and up to 20% in developing ones. One of the biggest dietary
culprits they uncovered was animal-based proteins.^86 In fact, large studies conducted in Europe
have shown that vegetarians are about 40% less likely to develop cancer than people who eat
meat.^87
More than 200 scientific studies have revealed that the components of a 90% or more plant-based,
nutrient-rich diet confer significant protection against many different types of cancer.
Throughout our lives, every single one of us will have cancer cells turn up in our bodies. However,
not everyone develops cancer, and the difference is usually due to diet.^88 Animal proteins such as
meat, dairy, and eggs alter hormone levels in the body, cause inflammation, promote cell growth
(^86) Campbell TC, Campbell TM, II. The China Study: Startling Implications for Diet, Weight Loss, and Long-Term Health.
Dallas, TX: BenBella Books, 2005.
World Cancer Research Fund. Food, nutrition, physical activity, and the prevention of cancer: A global perspective.
Washington, DC: American Institute of Cancer Research, 2007.
Cho E, Spiegelman D, Hunter DJ, et al. Premenopausal fat intake and risk of breast cancer. J Natl Cancer Inst.
2003;95:1079-1085.
Barnard ND, Nicholson A, Howard JL. The medical costs attributable to meat consumption. Prev Med. 1995;24:646-655.
Giovannucci E, Rimm EB, Colditz GA, et al. A prospective study of dietary fat and risk of prostate cancer. J Natl Cancer Inst.
1993;85(19):1571-1579.
Kolonel LN. Nutrition and prostate cancer. Cancer Causes Control. 1996;7(1):83-94.
Ma RW, Chapman K. A systematic review of the effect of diet in prostate cancer prevention and treatment. J Hum Nutr Diet.
2009;22(3):187-1899.
(^87) Thorogood M, Mann J, Appleby P, McPherson K. Risk of death from cancer and ischaemic heart disease in meat and non-
meat eaters. Br Med J. 1994;308:1667-1670.
Chang-Claude J, Frentzel-Beyme R, Eilber U. Mortality patterns of German Vegetarians after 11 years of follow-up.
Epidemiology. 1992;3:395-401.
Chang-Claude J, Frentzel-Beyme R. Dietary and lifestyle determinants of mortality among German Vegetarians. Int J
Epidemiol. 1993;22:228-236.
(^88) Campbell TC, Campbell TM, II. The China Study: Startling Implications for Diet, Weight Loss, and Long-Term Health.
Dallas, TX: BenBella Books, 2005.