For today's article, I have asked my wife, Dr. Liza Ong, to help in the preparation of a superhealthy recipe our readers can enjoy. It's her own recipe of a unique vegetable mix of the top 4 foods proven to have anticancer properties. Watch us in the above video.

These top anti-cancer foods were gathered from Dr. David Servan-Schreiber's international bestselling book, Anticancer: A New Way of Life. I then asked Dr. Liza to come up with a nutritious and delectable recipe we can serve for the family.
Here are the four main ingredients:

1. Garlic and onions -- When tested in the laboratory, garlic and leeks were the top inhibitors of cancer cells. Garlic and leeks contain ally sulfides which promote cell death in colon, breast, lung and prostate cancer, as well as leukemia. To best release its anticancer ingredients, the garlic clove should be crushed and gently fried with a little oil. Garlic can also be eaten raw, and added to salads.

2. Shitake mushrooms -- Among all the mushrooms, Shitake mushrooms are touted as having the most anticancer properties. Shitake mushrooms contain polysaccharides and lentinian, which increase the activity of our immune cells. These protective cells kill off any cancer cell that wants to replicate and invade the body's organs. The stronger your immune system, the lesser are your chances of getting sick. In Japan, cancer patients are encouraged to eat mushrooms to complement the effects of chemotherapy.

3. Carrots -- We know that carrots, like other yellow-orange colored fruits and vegetables, contain vitamin A and lycopene, which can help prevent cancer. In a six-year study on breast cancer patients, researchers found that those patients who ate more foods rich in carotenoids lived longer compared to those who ate less.

4. Broccoli or cauliflower -- These nutritious vegetables belong to the cabbage (Brassica) family of vegetables. Broccoli and cauliflower contain sulforaphane and indole-3-carbinols, which are potent anticancer substances. These molecules can prevent precancerous cells from turning into real cancer cells. To prepare cabbage, steam briefly or stir-fry quickly with a little olive oil. Don't boil them or you'll destroy its anticancer properties.

Cooking Our Anticancer Meal:

1. Heat pan and place a little cooking oil. We use a certain kind of olive oil (available in supermarkets) that is suitable for cooking.

2. Saute the minced garlic and chopped onions. Don't overcook them.
3. After 2 minutes, place a cup of sliced shitake mushrooms.
4. Add 2 to 3 tablespoons of low-salt oyster sauce mixed with water for taste. This makes the sauce yummier.
5. After around 3 minutes, add a cup of chopped carrots. We prefer the baby carrots variety, which is softer and easier to bite.
6. Add water from time to time (up to around half a glass) to have a saucy broth to cook the vegetables.
7. Next, add 2 cups of chopped broccoli or cauliflower, depending on your preference. Broccoli vegetables have more scientific studies to back it up, but they are more expensive.
8. Cover the frying pan and let the vegetables cook for another 2 minutes until they are soft enough to eat.

Tips for cooking vegetables:

1. Cook the vegetables just right, not undercooked or overcooked. Overcooking will destroy its anticancer properties.
2. Don't put too much sauce on your vegetables because some of the vitamins will go into the sauce.
3. If possible, don't add meat or fats into your vegetable mix. Let me remind you that fats are already scientifically proven to increase many forms of cancer including breast cancer and colon cancer.

Are there side effects to this meal? Not really, except that eating broccoli (or asparagus for that matter) will give a different smell to the urine. It's really because of the anticancer substances in broccoli. There's no harm in this. Just continue to drink your 8 to 10 glasses of water a day so that you will be hydrated and your kidneys will be able to function well.

Personally, Dr. Liza serves this broccoli-mushroom meal 3 or 4 times a week.

As added information, Dr. Servan-Schreiber lists other anti-cancer foods including green tea; curry and turmeric; ginger, tomatoes and tomato sauce; soy products like tofu and miso soup; oily fish with omega-3's like sardines, salmon and mackerel; probiotics and yogurt, and berries like strawberries, blueberries and cranberries.

Try eating more of these healthy foods to avoid cancer and stay healthy. Bon Appétit.