Over the years chemotherapy which is the application of drugs to get rid of tumors and cancerous cells has been on the center stage.
However, research efforts has revealed that local plant properties are encapsulated with prophylactic and therapeutic effects.
The efficacy of Nigerian plants and vegetables was brought to the fore at the 26th Inaugural lecture of Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State, Nigeria recently.
Delivering the lecture, themed: Confronting the ravaging “crab” for sustainable development; A biochemistry Archetype, Prof Emeka Iweala of the department of biochemistry, College of science and technology, revealed that most of the local vegetables and indeed other food plants around us are very potent in the fight to mitigate the prevalence of cancer.
According to Iweala, ” The efficacy of plants in the prevention of cancer is under reported. There is urgent need for the use of natural plants. The discovery of new cancer agents have brought the need to use natural plants so that the cancer cells can be destroyed. Food plants are good in cancer prevention”. He concluded.
Prof Iweala delightfully enumerated some of the food plants and vegetables that are readily available. These include: Bitter leafs— Vernomia amygdalina, Effirin leafs —- Ocimum gratissimum, Water leafs — Talinum fruticosum, Efo sokoyokoto— Celosia argentea and many others.
