Preventive Effect of Indian Food on Colorectal Cancer

Cancer, one of the deadliest challenges spreading drastically in the twenty-first century, has now officially become the most dangerous killer in the world according to the World Health Organization. Globally, colorectal cancer (CRC) is among the leading causes of mortality and morbidity throughout the world, thus representing a major public health problem. The modern diet and lifestyle (such as high meat consumption and excessive alcohol use, along with limited physical activity) has led to an increasing mortality rate for colorectal cancer worldwide. Although the incidence rate of CRC in native Indians has been rising slowly over decades, the CRC incidence rate in Central Asia, especially India, is comparatively lower than the Western world. In India the importance of food for healthy well-being is reiterated from a Siddha saying “Unave marunthu, marunthe unavu” meaning food is medicine and medicine is food. The concept in Indian tradition follows a prophylactic route in preventing many diseases. Each and every component of each recipe was well reported for their various biological activities. This chapter provides an extensive insight into Indian approach toward cancer prevention, molecular targets of selected Ayurvedic plants, role of spices and condiments, and dietary phytochemical in colon cancer prevention.