ANTI CANCER POTENTIALS OF INDIAN SPICES - A SCIENTIFIC APPRAISAL

Abstract

Cancer is the leading cause of death in economically developed countries and second leading cause of death in developing countries. It accounts for 7.4 million deaths (around 13 % of all deaths) in 2004 according to WHO. Recently great emphasis has been given towards the researches on Complementary and Alternative medicine that deal with cancer management. The present day need for new ideal drugs has prompted various researches evaluating possible anticancer agents in fruits, vegetables, herbs and spices. Thus in the present paper an attempt has been made to systematically reviews the anticancer potentials of very common Indian herbs mentioned in Ayurveda that are widely used in almost every kitchen in India as ingredients of Indian traditional dishes. India is known as 'the home of spices and has been a hub of spice cultivation and processing from ancient times. Evidence-based resources include both databases and compendiums of clinical trials, systematic reviews, meta-analyses and specialty journals devoted to disseminating evidence-based information revealed that the Indian spices like Crocus sativus, Curcuma longa, Syzygium aromaticum, Piper nigrum, Piper longum, Allium Sativum, Zingiber officinale, Nigella sativa, Trigonella foenum, Myristica fragrans possess anticancer activity. These findings from scientific studies marks a significant contribution as prevention of cancer as these spices are readily available and can be used as a condiments to any cooking procedure. It is recommended that families of every household should include spices in preparation of food for their family members to have cancer prevention.