Berries of all kinds are good for you and contain plant nutrients called anthocyanidins. These are incredible antioxidants with naturally high levels of resveratrol, which helps fight heart disease and cancer. So the next time you want to eat something sweet, juicy, and good for you, reach for blueberries, cranberries, raspberries, or strawberries.

We all know broccoli is good for us, but findings from the Institute of Food research have shown that four servings a week trigger a number of genes that protect you from cancer and block others that fuel tumours. The research looked at prostate cancer, but it’s thought likely that broccoli protects against many forms of disease, including breast cancer.

A healthy, balanced diet along with regular exercise and stress management is your best prevention, but every day at every meal you can choose food that will help to defend your body against the invasion of cancer.

• Green tea is a powerful antioxidant that can help destroy cancer cells. Steep for five minutes to help release the beneficial effects.
• Turmeric reduces cancer growth in lab studies. To be assimilated by the body it is best mixed with black pepper and ideally dissolved in olive oil.
• Ginger is a powerful anti inflammatory and antioxidant, which acts against cancer cells.
• Garlic can help reduce carcinogenic effects of certain substances.
• Fruits and vegetables rich in carotenoids – such as carrots, yams, sweet potatoes, squash, tomatoes, apricots and beets.
• Soya and other legumes can help block the uptake of dangerous hormones. Replace conventional milk products with organic soya milk; use tofu, tempeh and miso and other legumes like chickpeas, lentils etc.
• Mushrooms contain polysaccharides and lentinan, which stimulate the number and activity of the immune cells.
• Seaweed contains substances that slow cancer growth, especially breast, prostrate, skin and colon cancer.
• Omega 3s found in oily fish can reduce cancer cell growth in a large number of tumours. Omega 3s found in flaxseeds (linseeds) can also reduce the harmful effect of hormones that promote cancer growth.
• Herbs, such as mint, oregano and basil, are rich in useful acids of the terpene family, which have been shown to act on a wide variety of tumours.