to isolate dietary factors for cancer in general, and for PCa specifically. At best, this has yielded a limited picture and conflicting recommendations. When you step back and examine the diets and food supplies of regions where cancer rates are low, a different picture emerges. For example, when the PCa rates for Greece (pre-2006) are compared to United States rates, based upon autopsy examination of the prostate, you find that men between 50 and 59 years old in Greece have a rate of 5.2%, versus 30+% in the U.S. For men between 60 and 69 years old in Greece the rate is 13.8%, while the U.S. rate is 65+% – 4.7-times the Greek rate. This period was selected because at that time the Greek people still ate from a locally grown, heirloom food supply, unaltered in seed line and growing methods for hundreds of years (it has since changed to comply with European Union (EU) requirements and their health profile appears to be rapidly changing). This food supply represents a healthy variant of the Mediterranean diet.
In areas of Spain, where cancer rates are also extremely low, again the diet consists of locally grown heirloom foods. From this region we have a measure of the phytosterol content of the diet, which shows that average consumption of total phytosterols is about 400 mg per day, of which 67% is B-Sit. From here if we move to Germany, where cancer rates are approximately the same as those of the United States, again we find that the total phytosterol consumption is about 350 to 400 mg per day: however the B-Sit content is only in the 35-to-43% range.
One conclusion from this literature, especially when it is looked at in a broader context, is that it is not just the diet, but the nutritional composition of the food consumed in that diet, that makes a critical difference, and that B-Sit is essential for health in general, and our body’s anti-cancer mechanisms in particular.
Another way to look as this, is to look at the effects of high levels of dietary and circulating B-Sit. A partial list of the effects produced with high levels of B-Sit includes: normalizing cholesterol, a reduction in insulin resistance, support for normal weight control and fat metabolism, a reduction in asthma incidents, acting as an anti-inflammatory and an immune modulator, a reduction in cardiovascular disease and arteriolosclerosis, and reduced rates of lung, prostate, and other cancers.
Natural Synergism and Potentiation
One explanation for the wide ranging effects of adequate dietary B-Sit, which can be measured by blood levels, is that it acts in synergy with other substances, and also acts as a catalyst that potentiates antioxidant activity, as well as other antioxidant responses, especially for herb-based antioxidants, which in turn potentiate the efficacy of vitamin D3.11,12 It also is involved in a variety of processes throughout the body, from cell membrane structure, to regulation of estrogen and DHT production, apoptosis, immune regulation, and elimination of excess estrogens, among others.
The Ideal Phytosterol Composition
Based upon the available literature and our clinical observations, the ideal balance of phytosterols is comprised of B-Sit being greater than 62%; campesterol being less than 25%; stigmasterol being less than 10%; and brassicasterol being less than 3%. The following is a brief summary of the evidence for this composition. (Note: most phytosterol supplements contain a maximum of 43% B-Sit. This is due to it being derived from currently available soy. The problem with using this material as a supplement is that is merely provides the same balance found in the food supplies that are associated with higher rates of cancer, cardiovascular disease, obesity, and type II diabetes. Both population studies and clinical observation show that the balance of the sterols, from supplement and diet, is more important than the absolute amount. Therefore, higher supplemental amounts of properly balanced phytosterols are needed to offset the low B-Sit content and ratio from the food supply.)
•Βeta-sitosterol (B-Sit), at least 62%, absorption rate approximately 4%:
1.Reduces absorption of dietary cholesterol.
2.High plasma concentrations are associated with a markedly reduced risk of coronary heart disease (n 1242, >65 y/o).13
3.Increases apoptosis in cancer cells (4 to 6-times baseline).14
4.High levels in diet correlate with lower levels of cancer (prostate, lung, breast, colorectal, etc.)
5.Anti-inflammatory14
6.Current healthy Mediterranean food supplies provide phytosterols with over 65% B-Sit/sitostanol content, while geographical areas with high cancer and disease rate have about 43% or less B-Sit (with about the same amounts of total phytosterols, about 400 mg/day) content in their food.15 U.S. intake is estimated at 50-250 mg/day, with 43% or less b-Sit.16
7.Immune System modulator
8.B-Sit, and campesterol, also reduced alpha-tocopherol oxidation in liposomal membranes.
9.Decreases plaque formation in arteries.
10.Reduces estradiol production and carries excess estradiol from the gut.
•Campesterol (CS), not exceeding 20%, absorption rate approximately 13%:
1.Increases apoptosis in cancer cells (estimated to be about 4 to 6 times baseline).
2.Increases plaque formation in arteries. Note: Statin drugs increase CS concentration in muscle tissue, reducing B-Sit content, and disrupting membrane balance.17
•Stigmasterol, not exceeding 10%, absorption rate approximately 4%:
1.Stigmasterol, but not B-Sit or CS, inhibit SREPB-2 (sterol-responsive element-binding protein 2) processing and reduce cholesterol synthesis.
2.Activates the liver X receptor alpha (LXRα), an oxysterol-activated nuclear hormone receptor, which regulates the expression of genes involved in lipid and cholesterol homeostasis and inflammation. This may improve glucose tolerance.18
3.However, stigmasterol is a pro-oxidant and is also inflammatory.
4.Lowers CoQ10 levels (B-Sit and CS do not).
5.Can cause damage to adrenal glands by disrupting normal cholesterol homeostasis (B-Sit and CS do not).
6.Is a potent in vitro antagonist of the nuclear receptor for bile acids farnesoid x receptor (FXR), which is critically involved in hepatoprotection from cholestasis (inhibition of bile flow). Note: B-Sit does not have any inhibitory effect on FXR.
•Brassicasterol, not exceeding 3%, absorption rate not known:
1.The EU does not allow in supplements any amount greater then normally found in nature, which is a maximum of 3%.
2.Brassicasterol can cause damage to adrenal glands by disrupting normal cholesterol homeostasis (B-Sit and CS do not).
3.May lower CoQ10 levels (B-Sit and CS do not).
4.Note: Brassicasterol is significantly increased during the processing of canola oil. However, despite the problems with brassicasterol for the human body, this is considered to be good, since the brassicasterol helps stabilize the oil, and contributes to overall cholesterol lowering.
Phytosterols Require Complementary Antioxidants
Two of the overlooked aspects of increasing dietary B-Sit are: a) it stimulates the sphingomyelin cycle through increased ROS1 activity,
