Herbs and Nutrients Archives

October 20, 2025October 21, 2025

The Amazing Eggplant: My Calabrian Heritage’s Purple Powerhouse!

by Donnie Yance

As someone with deep Calabrian roots, eggplant isn’t just a vegetable in my kitchen—it’s practically family! Calabria is found in the “toe” of Southern Italy’s famous boot-shaped peninsula. My Italian ancestors knew what modern science is only beginning to understand: this humble purple fruit (yes, botanically it’s a fruit!) is a nutritional goldmine that deserves a starring role on your plate. My personal obsession? Eggplant rollatini, a dish I prepare so often my friends have started calling me the “Rollatini King”!

Although most of us refer to eggplants as vegetables, they’re technically a fruit, as they grow from a flowering plant and contain seeds. They are from the Solanaceae (Nightshade) family and are cousins to tomatoes, potatoes, and peppers.

October 13, 2025October 14, 2025

Natural Compounds for Beating Dormant Breast Cancer Stem Cells

By Donnie Yance

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. This review examines one of breast cancer’s most challenging aspects: dormant disseminated tumor cells (DTCs) that fuel cancer recurrence. Despite initial treatment success, 25-45% of breast cancer patients relapse months or years later with fatal secondary or metastatic disease, with dormancy being the key culprit behind both early and late recurrence.

September 8, 2025September 5, 2025

Parmigiano Reggiano: The King of Cheeses

by Donnie Yance

Parmigiano Reggiano, a cheese to which I am somewhat addicted, offers a delicious sharp, nutty, and slightly salty flavor that has earned it the nickname “King of Cheeses” among culinary enthusiasts worldwide.

The Health Paradox of Cheese

Cheese is a nutrient-dense fermented dairy product consumed worldwide, though its health effects remain controversial. It provides high-quality protein (mainly casein), essential minerals (calcium, phosphorus, magnesium), vitamins (A, K2, B2, B12, folate), and beneficial bioactive compounds including probiotics. However, cheese also contains significant amounts of saturated fat and sodium, which are generally considered unfavorable for cardiovascular health.

The molecular structure and nutritional profile of cheese varies substantially by type. While many varieties contain potentially problematic levels of fat and sodium with limited nutritional value, others like Parmigiano Reggiano offer exceptional health benefits despite being cheese.

Multiple meta-analysis studies provide comprehensive perspectives on cheese consumption research, identifying uncertainties, biases, and knowledge gaps in existing evidence.¹ Parmigiano Reggiano is characterized by exceptional nutritional qualities, containing substances with specific biological actions. According to the definition established by the European Union, it can be fully classified as a ‘functional’ food.²

September 3, 2025September 3, 2025

The Benefits of Baking Soda For Cancer?

By Donnie Yance

Is baking soda for cancer a valid idea? Cancer (The Cancer Energy/Intelligence) alters the tumor microenvironment in several ways, and one of them is by creating an acidic zone around the tumor that promotes cancer progression and treatment resistance. Recent research suggests that sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) or potassium bicarbonate supplementation can offer significant benefits for prostate and other cancer patients by neutralizing this tumor acidity.

Sodium bicarbonate, commonly known as baking soda, serves multiple clinical purposes beyond its well-established role as an antacid for treating gastric hyperacidity. Recent research by Chao et al.¹ has demonstrated promising applications in oncology through a novel approach targeting intratumor lactic acidosis during chemoembolization procedures. Chemoembolization is a treatment where chemotherapy drugs are delivered directly to a tumor, while simultaneously blocking the tumor’s blood supply to reduce side effects and maximize drug concentration at the tumor site. In their clinical trial, the researchers modified conventional chemoembolization by incorporating a 5% sodium bicarbonate solution alongside standard cytotoxic drugs, achieving remarkably high local tumor control rates. This use of baking soda for cancer by injecting it directly into the tumor has profound implications. The underlying mechanism for sodium bicarbonate’s antitumor efficacy appears to be its ability to neutralize the acidic tumor microenvironment, which typically promotes cancer cell proliferation and therapeutic resistance.²

August 11, 2025August 11, 2025

Kefir: A Potent Immune-Enhancing Fermented Food with Promising Cancer Prevention Properties

By Donnie Yance

Kefir is a fermented beverage, usually made from dairy, that has beneficial health effects due to its antioxidant, antimicrobial, and anti-inflammatory properties.¹ Kefir originates from the Caucasus region (between the Black Sea and Caspian Sea), and from Tibet (between China and India). Research also suggests its probiotic content directly influences the immune system’s cancer surveillance capabilities.

Recent research has illuminated kefir’s remarkable immune modulating properties. The fermentation process creates bioactive peptides, exopolysaccharides, and diverse probiotic strains that work synergistically to enhance immune function. Studies have demonstrated that regular kefir consumption may increase natural killer cell activity, modulate inflammatory responses, and strengthen intestinal barrier function.²

July 21, 2025August 8, 2025

Healthy Carbs Can Help You Lose Weight

By Donnie Yance

Contrary to popular belief, carbohydrates can be powerful allies in your weight loss journey when you understand how to use them properly. There are better carbs and worse carbs, and healthy carbs can actually help you lose weight.

For years, carbohydrates have been villainized in diet culture, portrayed as guaranteed weight-gain culprits. This misconception has been reinforced by the popularity and widely publicized success stories of low-carb approaches like the Atkins and ketogenic diets. However, this oversimplified advice lacks crucial nuance about how carbohydrates actually function in our bodies.

In reality, high-quality carbohydrates, for example from whole grains, play an essential role in fat-burning and metabolic health, and just might be the missing piece in your fitness puzzle.

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