Eating habits, knowledge about cancer prevention and the HPLP scale in Turkish adolescents.

BACKGROUND: Nutritional status and healthy lifestyle are important factors not only in cancer etiology but also for prevention efforts. A good nutritional status contributes to a healthy life with high economic, social and cultural level. Unhealthy eating habits are part of risky behavior seen from adolescence. The present study was therefore carried out to determine eating habits, level of knowledge about cancer prevention and behavior of a group of adolescents. METHODS: Data were collected using questionnaire covering eating habits and knowledge of adolescents on prevention from cancer, and special scale (HPLP) to determine the related behavior. Three hundred sixty six of 390 students volunteered for study. RESULTS: Eating habits and the level of cancer prevention knowledge were similar for both genders, except for the exercise issue. The mean total points of adolescents in the Health Promotion Behavior and Subscales was 113,63. While spiritual growth had the highest score in HPLP subscale, exercise had a minimal score. Exercise was the only HPLP subscale with a statistically significant difference between male and female genders. CONCLUSIONS: Although they have some information, the adolescents surveyed did not have preventive skills relative to their practical life. In general in order to ensure cancer prevention and a healthy life style social, cultural and sportive activities should be encouraged and educational programmes supporting these goals should be designed and applied for all stages of life, starting in early childhood.

Cancer and its prevention by some horticultural and field crops in Turkey.

Diet is considered to play an important role in the etiology of carcinogenesis, and almost 30 % of cancer development is known to have a dietary background. Many diets appear to contain groups of food components that can prevent, slow down, or even reverse carcinogenesis. In the present commentary, discussion is focused on the following crops: almonds, apricots, plums, peaches and nectarines, cherries, pears, figs, chestnuts, hazelnuts, pistachios, walnuts, grapes, strawberries, avocados, bananas, olives, lemons and limes, oranges (tangerines, mandarins, clemetines, satsuma), grapefruit and pomelons, artichokes, potatoes, green beans, carrots, cabbages, melons, watermelons, pumpkins, cucumbers, garlic, cauliflower, peppers, eggplants, tomatoes, onions, dry bean, soybeans, maize, barley, wheat, rye, and lentils. According to results some of epidemiology, numbers of horticultural and field crops of Turkey are likely to be associated with reduced risk of different cancers. Associations with protection in individual cases are here reviewed.

Herbs as a food source in Turkey.

Medical benefits of herbs have been known for centuries. Many examples contain powerful active components that, if used correctly, can help in healing the living organism. These herbs can also be provided in the form of capsules and powders, as dietary supplements, and thus differ from conventional foods or food ingredients. The traditional Turkish kitchen is rich of various herbs which have been employed as ingredients since ancient times. The present paper provides a brief overview of some important herbs in the Turkish flora, including fennel, sage, rosemary, mallow, sweet basil, savory, chicory, nettle, thyme, flax, cumin, caper, coriander, milk thistle, spanish lavender, marjoram, dandelion, rocket, purslane, spanish salsify, amaranthus, wild radish, and wild mustard. Studies on these herbs have revealed that they contain powerful active components that might be effective for increasing human health and preventing cancer.

Probiotics and health.

Probiotics are described as live microbial food ingredients that are beneficial to health of the of host, especially by improving intestinal microbial balance. The major consumption of probiotics is in dairy-based foods form, which is containing intestinal species of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium. A number of potential benefits of probiotics have been proposed, including: adherence to cells; exclusion or reduction of pathogenic adherence; production of acids, hydrogen peroxide, and bacteriocins antagonistic to pathogen growth; safe, noninvasive, noncarcinogenic and nonpathogenic characteristics; and congregation to form a normal balanced flora. The interrelation between probiotics and health are reviewed in this article.