Cancer is such a dreaded disease. The thought of fighting for your life in a battle against cancer is enough to keep you up at night. Especially if cancer runs in your family. But instead of wasting energy worrying about it, there is action you can take.

Most cancers are preventable. Compounds in certain fruits, vegetables and teas can dramatically lower your cancer risk. I'm talking about flavonoids. While there's no recommended daily intake for flavonoids, there should be. Most people simply don't get enough.

Today I'll reveal the two most powerful, cancer-fighting flavonoids. You'll discover which foods have the highest levels. You'll also see how to get these powerful flavonoids in supplements.

* Colorful Cancer Combatants *

Flavonoids give apples and other fruits and vegetables their bright, rainbow-like colors. You can also find them in teas and wine. There are more than 5,000 flavonoids in nature. You should know about two in particular, if you want to protect against cancer: quercetin and catechins.

Quercetin is the flavonoid in those healthful apples. It can protect against lung, skin and prostate cancers. A study published in the journal Carcinogenesis recently found quercetin could stop cancer-causing changes in prostate cells. It flushes away carcinogens and can block tumor development and growth.

Catechins pack such a wallop against cancer they can prevent tumors in almost every organ in your body, from your esophagus and stomach to your colon and liver— even your breasts.

Catechins work by acting as antioxidants. They fight tissue-attacking free radicals and protect your cells against tumor development and growth. In fact, studies show increasing your intake of catechins can reduce your cancer risk between 30 and 60%.

But most people don't consume near enough flavonoids to get this kind of cancer protection. In fact, the average daily intake is only 23 milligrams. You need 100 milligrams. The good news is getting more each day is easy...

*Adding Catechins and Quercetin to Your Diet *

? Eat more fruits and vegetables rich in these two flavonoid compounds.
? The most quercetin is in onions, apples, peppers, berries, grapes, tomatoes, black tea and garlic.
? For added cancer fighting, substitute trade morning cup of coffee for a mug of catechin-rich green or black tea a couple times a week.
? By making these changes alone, you can easily improve your flavonoid intake to 100 milligrams a day.

And, if you're curious to learn about more food sources of flavonoids, the USDA has an online database of 225 foods and their flavonoid content. You can find it at http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/Data/Flav/flav.html.

Al Sears MD

Greenwood-Robins, Maggie Ph.D. Foods That Combat Cancer, Avon Books, 2004. p 17-20.