The nutrient-rich dietary supplement wheat grass provides the essential vitamins A, C, and E as well as iron, calcium and magnesium. It belongs to a family of wheat-like grasses scientifically named Triticum aestivum, a subspecies of Poaceae, and can be easily grown in your home or purchased from health food stores. It is promoted for treating and preventing a host of health problems including shrinking cancer tumors, but no clinical evidence exists confirming this claim.
Cancer Cell Development
Cells are the basic unit of all life. Cancer begins in localized cells and can spread to other parts of your body through the blood and lymphatic system. Normally cells grow and divide to form tissue, which then creates, replenishes or maintains organs. The division of cells is a controlled process and when cells get damaged or become old they die and new cells form to replace them. Abnormalities in the cells prohibits them from dying and they begin dividing uncontrollably to form a mass of tissue, or tumor. Cancerous cells may form from exposure to toxins, or carcinogens.
Wheat Grass and Cancer Cells
The antioxidants in wheat grass purportedly neutralize the carcinogens in cancerous tumor cells. The American Cancer Society notes that individual reports describing tumor shrinkage and extended survival rates of people following a wheat grass diet are unsubstantiated by clinical evidence. A 2006 publication in "Phytotherapy Research" explored the antioxidant activity of wheat grass. Researchers found varying degrees of antioxidant power, but the extent and usability of wheat grass for diminishing cancerous cells was not explored or confirmed in this study.
Wheat Grass Benefit During Chemotherapy
Wheat grass as an adjunct may be effective in quality of life improvement for the terminally ill cancer patient. A 2006 study published in the "Journal of Clinical Oncology" investigated the role of wheat grass for improving blood and platelet count and found that study participants had a positive result. Furthermore, wheat grass therapy in this regard may serve as an effective alternative to blood transfusion. Similarly, a 2007 study published in "Nutrition and Cancer" found that breast cancer patients had lowered blood toxicity with regular wheat grass juice administration, resulting in anemia prevention. However, in both studies the authors indicate ongoing research is warranted to ensure replication of results and safety.
Wheat Grass Supplementation
Wheat grass is generally recognized as a safe dietary supplement. You can grow your own from seeds or obtain it as tablets, capsules or a liquid extract from health food stores. Side effects of wheat grass may include nausea, headaches, hives or throat swelling. If you consume the raw plant you may be exposed to bacterial contaminants because wheat grass grows in untreated soil or water. Consult your physician before using wheat grass to determine safety.
References
- American Cancer Society: Wheatgrass
- Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center: Wheat Grass
- National Cancer Institute: What is Cancer?
- "Phytotherapy Research"; Evaluation of the Antioxidant Activity of Wheatgrass as a Function of Growth Under Different Conditions; Sunil D. Kulkarni, et al.; March 2006
- "Journal of Clinical Oncology"; Effect of Wheat Grass Juice in Supportive Care of Terminally Ill Cancer Patients; S. Dey, et al.; 2006
- "Nutrition and Cancer"; Wheat Grass Juice May Improve Hematological Toxicity Related to Chemotherapy in Breast Cancer Patients; Gil Bar-Sela, et al.; 2007
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