by Rose Marie Williams, MA

Following lung cancer, prostate cancer is now the second leading killer of men. More men are diagnosed with prostate cancer than women with breast cancer, but the number of deaths from each is about the same. There is a great deal more they share in common too.

The areas of highest incidence are for men living in North America and Northern European countries. African American males have the highest incidence of prostate cancer of all, and also the highest death rate for this disease.

Incidence of prostate cancer in the Asian countries is quite low by comparison. However, the risk increases in immigrants moving from low risk areas to high risk areas, suggesting that the risk has more to do with environmental factors than racial or genetic factors. The same holds true for breast cancer risk patterns.

Excess weight and the typical Western diet, rich in fat have been associated with a high risk of prostate cancer in several studies, and are also implicated as risk factors for breast cancer. A study reported in the Journal of NCI found total consumption of fat was directly related to risk of advanced prostate cancer. The association was due primarily to fat, but not vegetable fat. Red meat was the main culprit, representing the food group with the strongest positive association with advanced prostate cancer.

The body represents the most magnificent and complex chemical factory ever designed. All body functions, strong immune response, and general good health depend on a proper balance of hormones. Prostate and breast cancers are considered to be hormone dependent.

In the past fifty-five years synthetic chemicals have become pervasive in our society and all over the globe. We have a pretty good understanding of just how damaging they are to wildlife, and are beginning to recognize similar negative impact on human health.

Estrogen mimics don't just affect women. Men make estrogen too, though in smaller amounts compared to testosterone, and men are just as vulnerable to any substance that interferes with the body's natural balance of these two important hormones which can have a negative impact on prostate health.

Outspoken critic of the cancer industry, Dr. Samuel Epstein had an article in the Los Angeles Times, 3/24/97 offering the following scenario of meat production.

"When US and Canadian beef cattle go to feedlots, hormone pellets are implanted under the ear skin,* a process that is repeated at the mid point of their I 00-day fattening period. The hormones increase the weight of the cattle, adding to profits by about $80 p/animal."

"The most common hormone in current use is estradiol, a potent cancer-causing and gene-damaging estrogen. The FDA maintains that residues of estradiol and other hormones in meat are within 'normal' levels, and has waived any requirements for monitoring and chemical testing."

The truth revealed in "confidential reports to the FDA, obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, showed high hormone residues in meat products, even under ideal test conditions. Following a single ear implant of Synovex-S, a combination of estradiol and progesterone, estradiol levels in different meat products were up to 20 fold higher than normal."

"These hormones are linked evermore closely to the escalating incidence of reproductive cancers in the US since 1950 - 55% for breast cancer, 120% for testicular cancer and 190%(!) for prostate cancer."

Population studies indicate that high fat diets involving red meat consumption increase prostate cancer incidence and accelerate its growth. High blood levels of alpha-linolenic acid, from animal fat, are markers for prostate cancer risk.

In addition to the hormones which are administered to cattle in feedlots, the animals take in additional estrogenic compounds from pesticide treated feed. Atrazine, an herbicide used in corn cultivation, has been found to cause enlargement of the prostate and can lower testosterone levels. It has also contributed to mammary tumors in laboratory rats.

The estrogenic mimicking chemicals are petroleum derivatives and are lipid soluble, attaching to fat and bioaccumulating up the food chain with humans receiving the largest

doses of all. Meat lovers should consider eating organic. Because hormone mimicking chemicals are not easily flushed out of the body as are natural estrogens, they can interfere with many of the body's natural functions from alertness to immune suppression.

These chemicals are everywhere - pesticides, fungicides and insecticides are used on our food, in our homes, yards, schools, and places of business. They are in detergents and personal care products. Even plastic has estrogenic properties which can transfer to fatty food (like meat and cheese) around which it is wrapped. Heating food in plastic containers in the microwave should be avoided for this reason.

Chemicals don't just disappear after they are used, contrary to what manufacturers may say. The active ingredients often break down into metabolite products that can be even more dangerous than the original chemical, and last indefinitely in the environment polluting our drinking water, as well as the air we breathe.

The risk factor for cancer may not be the animal fat itself, but all the chemical toxins stored in the fat, which then bioaccumulate in the fat of meat eating consumers.

Exposure to heavy metals and other pollutants can also increase risk. Prostate cancer is particularly common among welders, battery manufacturers, rubber workers, and workers frequently exposed to cadmium, a toxic heavy metal.

For hormone dependent cancers such as prostate and breast cancers, dietary factors influencing hormone activity are of special interest. Intake of plant estrogens is much higher in Asian countries where the incidence of breast and prostate cancers is quite low. It is believed the weak plant estrogens found in soy foods have the ability to antagonize the action of the more potent endogenous estrogens in tumor promotion.

In test tube studies, genistein - an isoflavine in soy - has been shown to inhibit the growth of prostate tumor cells.

The prostate has the highest amount of zinc of any organ. It appears that zinc is essential for the metabolism of testosterone, which is the primary male hormone. It is believed that zinc may play a protective role in prostate health. Patients with chronic prostatitis generally suffer from low levels of zinc. Patients given zinc supplements report an easing of painful symptoms and a reduction in prostate size. Doctors who carried out the experiments emphasize that zinc can not replace conventional treatment for most prostate disorders.

Zinc is one of the many nutrients easily depleted by prescription drugs, particularly Pepcid, Tagamet, Zantac, some diuretics, corticosteroids, and others.