The pancreas is a small organ of the digestive system. It produces enzymes that aid in the digestion of food and insulin that aids in the metabolism of sugar. A healthy pancreas is able to perform its function without causing pain or symptoms of indigestion. Both pancreatitis, which is inflammation of the pancreas, and pancreatic cancer can severely damage the health of this organ and your entire body. There are several types of food that prevent inflammation and cancer and promote pancreatic health.
Low-fat foods
The pancreas works overtime when you consume high fat foods, and overworked organs are generally not the very healthy. The National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse, which is associated with the National Institutes of Health, notes that to prevent or treat pancreatitis, foods that are low in fat should definitely be eaten instead of high-fat foods. Low-fat foods include chicken, turkey, fish and fresh vegetables and fruits. Processed foods tend to have a higher fat content and this can be determined by checking the nutrition facts label.
The University of Maryland Medical Center adds that foods rich in unsaturated fatty acids, such as salmon, can also help reduce any existing inflammation in the pancreas.
Fruits
The University of Maryland Medical Center reports that some clinical studies have shown that foods rich in antioxidants promote a healthy pancreas by relieving any inflammation that are indicative or can progress to pancreatitis. Many fruits, like blueberries, pomegranates, cherries and tomatoes, are rich in inflammation-reducing antioxidants, in addition to a variety of vitamins. A study performed by Dr. June Chan and colleagues at the University of California San Francisco and published in the September 2005 "Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention" also showed the benefits of fruit on the pancreas. Dr. Chan showed that people who ate or drank more fruit or fruit juice were much less likely to develop pancreatic cancer.
Vegetables
The study lead by Dr. Chan also showed a very strong correlation between the consumption of many types of vegetables and pancreatic health. People who ate green leafy vegetables like spinach and kale; yellow vegetables such as squash; and onions, garlic, and carrots were much less likely to ultimately develop pancreatic cancer. Thus these vegetables promoted pancreatic health by making it less likely that healthy pancreatic cells would transform into pancreatic cancer cells. This is likely because these vegetables are high in iron, vitamins, and antioxidants, as well as being naturally low in fat.
References
- "Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers, and Prevention": Vegetable and Fruit Intake and Pancreatic Cancer in a Population-Based Case-Control Study in the San Francisco Bay Area; June M. Chan, Furong Wang, and Elizabeth A. Holly; Septmeber 2005
- National Digestive Diseases Information Clearing House: Pancreatitis
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Pancreatitis
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