Cancer-Fighting Meal Plans Aim To Curb Disparities Among Minorities (INFOGRAPHIC)

If you truly are what you eat, then here's your chance to be a living, walking cancer combatant, according to experts at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center who have developed a series of food plate worksheets that focus on nutrition and cancer prevention, with a culturally-sensitive twist.

The worksheets, which include cancer-fighting food options, serving size recommendations and a healthy recipe, are designed with three groups in mind, ones that experts say are more likely to develop and/or die from certain types of cancer -- African Americans, Hispanics and Vietnamese.

According to the American Cancer Society, African Americans are more likely to develop and die from cancer than any other racial or ethnic population. And while Hispanics have lower incidence rates for all cancers combined, when compared to whites, they generally have higher rates of cancers associated with infections, such as uterine cervix, liver, gallbladder, and stomach cancers.

Cultural differences aside, MD Anderson's food plates highlight the USDA's MyPlate (an update to the former Food Pyramid that was introduced by First Lady Michelle Obama last year) and the American Institute for Cancer Research's (AICR) food guidelines. All three make the following recommendations:

• Meals should stay within the target calorie range of 500 calories for men and 400 calories for women to help adults maintain a healthy weight.
• Two-thirds of the plate should be filled with vegetables, fruits, whole grains and beans.
• One-third or less of the plate should be filled with animal protein, with no more than 18 ounces of red meat (pork, beef or lamb) per week.

Here's how African Americans can build a cancer-fighting meal. Get an accompanying recipe and worksheets for Hispanic and Vietnamese communities here.

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Comments

[cadawa]

12:44 PM on 04/20/2012

Make those as many organic vegetables and beans (check out EWG's dirty dozen http://ewg.org for where to put your grocery dollars) Eating more veg laced with pesticides and herbicides will only expose you to greater cancer risk.

[treadway123]

02:18 PM on 04/20/2012

For what it is worth, my husband died of Cancer. We had our own garden an we loved fresh green veggie an fruit. This is just none sense talking. My uncle also died of cance(non smoker), seventh day adv an eat fish every Friday. No caffein (coffee/tea). Good Veggie, fruit with little fish our side skinless chicken an fish.

[cadawa]

03:15 PM on 04/20/2012

I'm sorry for your loss.
Sounds like there other environmental factors in play. Cancer clusters develop around areas that suffer from industrial pollution. Veggies are not going fix that.

[Tia2008]

12:10 AM on 04/21/2012

I'm sorry about the loss of your husband and uncle. I too have several family members that have died of cancer as well as others that are currently diagnosed with it (my father and cousin).

I follow the diet suggested in the article (with exception to strict adherence to the grains) and so far so good for me but, truth be told, I don't believe doctors or scientist know (yet) what diet (if any) can ward off cancer.

[SamKnause]

11:30 AM on 04/20/2012

Cannabis extract, but it is illegal in the land of the free and home of the brave.

[scienceoflife1]

10:23 AM on 04/20/2012

no pork.............kick it to the curve...now....eat less meat and live longer..

[Taylor Lackie]

05:04 AM on 04/20/2012

Why is this even news?

[freedom1947]

05:37 PM on 04/19/2012

Kush baked in a pie?