Photo: SweetonVeg

I’ve spoken broadly about the benefits of a plant based diet. It makes you look and feel good, it reduces aging, and fights the free radicals that break our bodies down. Additionally, according to a number of different studies referenced below, it shields the body against cancer growth. But even still, we’re left wondering how exactly the body is better able to fight cancer on a plant-based diet. That’s where Dr. Neil Barnard and Michael Greger come in to explain it in terms we’re better able to understand.

Everyday 50 billion of our cells die and another 50 billion new ones are born. When we’re still growing it’s important that more cells grow than die off because we’re going through just that, a growth spurt. But when we’re full grown it’s different because extra growth can mean a tumor.

One of the best ways to tell if your cells are balanced or if one is outgrowing the other is a result of your IGF-1 levels, a growth hormone called insulin like growth factor number 1. If your levels stay too high for too long it sends a message to your cells to grow, divide, and keep growing. The more IGF-1 in your blood stream, the more likely you are to get cancer.

Studies presented in the video below show that within a short period of time IGF-1 levels drop drastically on a plant-based diet. Eating fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes, and seeds clean your blood in a way that’s unmistakable.

Watch the Video: