[naturalnews.com]

Watercress prevents cancer
by Jonathan Benson

(NaturalNews) New research out of the Cancer Research Centre at
Southampton General Hospital's School of Medicine in the U.K. has found
that watercress, a superfood vegetable, works to reduce levels of the
key growth factor that causes tumor growth. According to researchers,
regular consumption of watercress works the same as -- if not better
than -- conventional anti-cancer drug treatments, except without all the
harmful side effects.

"Watercress has the ability to turn off HIF1, a signal sent out by cells
calling for blood supply," explains Dr. Nicholas Perricone, an
anti-aging specialist, concerning the study. "Scientists have been
looking for anti-angiogenesis agents for years because if we can turn
off the blood supply, we can kill the cancer. And it looks like
watercress can do that."
According to Perricone, when HIF1 levels become irregular and out of
sync, precancerous cells that are otherwise harmless begin to get the
blood supply they need to thrive and grow. But anti-cancer agents
naturally present in watercress protect the body from these malignant
cells and ensure that blood only goes to healthy cells.

A previous study published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
in 2007 found that regular consumption of watercress helps to
significantly reduce free radical damage to white blood cell DNA as
well, effectively improving the body's ability to guard against disease
and maintain good health.

Watercress has been used for centuries to treat other ailments like
migraine headaches, eczema, anemia, tuberculosis and kidney and liver
disease. It contains a wide variety of healing nutrients and, since it
is a food and not a drug, it can be safely consumed in large quantities
to obtain therapeutic benefit.
Watercress can be added to salads, soups, sandwiches, stir-frys, stews
and many other things. It can also be juiced along with other fruits and
vegetables in daily juice beverages.

Sources for this story include:
http://www.lef.org/news/LefDailyNew...