Researchers, who looked at more than 100,000 people in several countries, believe that the key protective ingredient is allicin, which is also found in onions, scallions, leeks, and chives. Allicin appears to inhibit cancer growths and detoxify carcinogens in the body, say scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. It also inhibits Heliobacter pylori, the ulcer bug linked to stomach cancer. Raw cloves appear most powerful, although letting a meal sit after cooking allows allicin to regenerate its protective power. Researchers at the University of Iowa examined survival data of more than 135,000 U.S. women diagnosed with breast cancer between 1988 and 1995.
Several factors contribute to the disparity.
Also, cultural barriers and less access to screening programs may prevent some African-American women from having regular mammograms. Exposure and susceptibility to chemical toxins, poverty, lower levels of education, and obesity in some populations may also play a role. Racial differences in breast carcinoma survival. The studies involved roughly half a million women in the U.S. and abroad. Although variations in age and socioeconomic status may have skewed the results in six of the trials, the researchers determined that the two best controlled trials showed mammography screening to have no effect on risk of death from breast cancer.