Soursop Fruit
Soursop fruit have a reputation as a cancer fighter
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Can soursop cure cancer?
Cancer cell close-up view
The debate about soursop as a cancer cure
Soursop has a long history of being used to fight cancer naturally. People who live in tropical climates and have readily accessible soursop fruit (guanabana) that’s grown locally. The tree is often found in people’s backyards.
The fruit tree’s leaves has long been used to make soursop tea. The raw fruit is also eaten daily in an effort to treat their cancer to beat the disease.
Caribbean Islanders similarly relate to soursop the way people from the Middle East relate to Black Seed Oil, which is said to “cure everything except death”.
If you ask any Caribbean islander, most know someone who has consumed soursop fruit, leaves or related graviola byproducts to cure cancer. Western medicine does not wholly support these claims, saying there is no absolute evidence that graviola or soursop works as a cure for cancer.
The claims are anecdotal, but there is some science that is showing promise to prove that soursop is a definitive cancer killer.
The science of soursop’s cancer fighting reputation
Claims that soursop – or graviola as some call it, or guanabana in Spanish – is an all natural cancer fighter has some basis in science and lab research.
The anti-cancer claims associated with soursop come from more than 20 laboratory studies. They have shown soursop extracts to be effective against killing a range of cancer cell lines, including:
- breast cancer
- lung cancer
- colon cancer
- prostate cancer
- liver cancer
- pancreatic cancer
- skin cancer.
- And many more types of cancer.
The studies show that soursop may have the ability to kill malignant cells in 12 different types of cancer. The active ingredient is thought to be a type of plant compound (phytochemical) called annonaceous acetogenins.
(Note that guanabana, soursop and graviola are all common words for the scientific name of the plant Annona muricata).
Although test-tube and animal research demonstrates that graviola may be an anti-cancer agent, there have been no clinical trials or studies in humans, and therefore the use of graviola for cancer treatment remains controversial and subject to much debate.
Researchers have examined graviola leaves, bark, seeds and fruit. What scientists do know is that soursop contains many active compounds and chemicals which have healing properties.
The curative magic of phytochemicals
At the heart of the cancer research is an examination of a compound group known as phytochemicals.
The phytochemical of interest to researchers is called asannonaceous acetogenins. Studies show that annonaceous acetogenins has potent anti-tumor properties. It exhibits selective toxic properties against tumor cells. Further clinical studies also demonstrated the powerful anti-cancerous, anti-tumorous, and antiviral properties of annonaceous acetogenins.
Recent studies have found that natural compounds of graviola, acetogenins have superb properties to inhibit the enzyme processes that are specifically present in membrane of cancerous cells. Through this mechanism of action they are toxic for cancerous cells and don’t create toxicity in healthy cells.
However, a word of caution, no studies have yet been conducted with humans to show that soursop consumption is indeed an effective cancer inhibitor. That said, animal studies have shown extracts from the leaves can have anti-inflammatory, analgesic, antidiabetic, antiulcer and antiviral effects.
Proof of soursop’s curative powers could come from clinical trials where cancer patients are treated with the fruit compounds. No have been conducted to date.
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Soursop’s tumor killing abilities
Purdue University published a promising news article in 1997, that showed that Annonaceous acetogenins are effective in destroying tumor cells. And, it has the ability fight cells that have shown resistance to other anti-cancer agents.
The National Cancer Institute has also explored the toxic effects of Graviola against cancerous cells in a plant screening program in 1976. They discovered that the graviola stem and leaves demonstrated active toxic effects against cancer cells.
In various vitro clinical trials, specific phytochemical acetogenins have been found in Graviola. They have selective toxic effects against various cancerous cells like:
- lung carcinoma cell lines,
- prostate adenocarcinoma
- breast tumor lines
- liver cancer cell lines
- pancreatic carcinoma cell lines
- colon adenocarcinoma cell lines
- and multidrug resistant breast adenocarcinoma.
Other clinical findings by Taiwanese scientists show that at very low dosages, annonaceous acetogenins from graviola exhibited highly toxic effects particularly to ovarian, breast, cervical, bladder and skin cancer cell lines.
In laboratory studies, graviola extracts can also kill some types of liver and breast cancer cells that are resistant to particular chemotherapy drugs.
What’s the bottom line? Can soursop cure cancer?
It appears that consuming soursop may help cancer patients fight their disease, even if scientists have yet to definitively prove it.
How to fight cancer with soursop
- Drink tea made from soursop leaves one to three times per day with meals
- Eat fresh soursop fruit daily (buy fresh guanabana/soursop fruit here)
Where to buy graviola or soursop products
Learn more about where to buy soursop and graviola products. Here is a good list, to get you started. Plus read on.
Soursop leaves
Wild, hand-picked and naturally organic soursop leaves are available here. They are sun-dried, organic and ready for tea making.
Fresh soursop fruit
Order fresh soursop fruit from our family farmers in Grenada (in the Caribbean), delivered to you in the US by air 2 days after picking:
Vacuum sealed soursop pulp in a jar
Available on Amazon. It has a shelf life of a year in its sealed glass container. See our Gfruit review.
Additional soursop and cancer resources:
- The alternative medicine pawpaw and its acetogenin constituents suppress tumor angiogenesis via the HIF-1/VEGF pathway
- Graviola and cancer
- Experts caution against soursop
- Soursop graviola cancer-cure strong evidence
- Heath Sciences Institute: Graviola and Cancer
- Can graviola cure cancer?
- Peruvian tree compound 10000x effective than chemo drug
- Graviola tree is a miraculous natural cancer cell killer
- https://www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/integrative-medicine/herbs/graviola
- Research papers on graviola
Where to buy fresh soursop
Fresh soursop can sometimes be found at local markets
If you want to buy soursop fruit, it can sometimes be tough to find in North America. It is not always available in your local store or supermarket. Here is why:
Why fresh soursop is hard to find
Fresh soursop fruit is grown primarily in tropical areas of the world. That includes northern and central South America and the Caribbean islands. It is also farmed in the United States, in southern parts of Florida, California, Nevada and New Mexico, where the weather is warm enough for the soursop tree to flourish.
It was exported in the 1500s to Africa and the graviola tree has made its way to Southeast Asian countries as well. Vietnam is well known for its soursop, and it can be found in local fruit markets.
Where buy soursop locally in the U.S.
We ship fresh soursop fruit direct from south Florida to your door via 2-Day Air courier. Fruit is source in the Caribbean.
Alternatively, if you have a Brazilian or similar South America run market locally, then you may want to check their produce section. You can occasionally find it listed as guanabana, the Spanish term for soursop. The same goes if you have a Jamaican or Caribbean grocery in your city.
Buy fresh soursop online
Online you also have buying options. Here are sources online where you can buy soursop fruit:
Fresh soursop fruit sources:
- Fresh soursop that ships to the 48 contiguous states
- Fresh soursop – special lower prices for Florida residents
- Vietnamese soursop on Alibaba
Vacuum sealed soursop fruit
- Vacuum packed soursop in a jar > See review | Buy on Amazon
- Soursop fruit in syrup > Buy on Amazon
How much does soursop fruit cost?
Because soursop is a tropical fruit that ripens over a few days and then goes bad, getting the famous fruit to your door can be costly in smaller quantities. We ship it to you in the U.S. for about $15 per pound + 1-2 day air shipping ($29 to $85 depending on where you are in the US).
However you can remove the fruit pulp from the skin and freeze it, so we recommend you buy fresh fruit in volume and freeze it or share the cost with friends. It becomes more affordable.
You can also buy vacuum sealed jars of soursop pulp from Amazon for around $18/lb shipping included (using Amazon Prime). However it is not fresh from the tree.
Soursop nutrition values
Dietary information about graviola fruit
A typical serving of the soursop fruit is low in calories and high in nutrients, like fiber and vitamin C. For facts on a 3.5 oz (100g) serving of raw soursop — think the size of half a medium sized apple — read the following nutritional summary data, then scroll down to read the raw soursop nutrition values box below:
- Calories: 66
- Protein: 1 g
- Carbs: 16.8 g (13.5g net carbs)
- Fiber: 3.3 g
- Fat: 0.3 g
- Vitamin C: 34% of the Recommended Daily Intake (RDI)
- Potassium: 8% of the Recommended Daily Intake (RDI)
- Magnesium: 5% of the Recommended Daily Intake (RDI)
- Thiamine: 5% of the Recommended Daily Intake (RDI)
Raw Soursop Nutrition Values |
|
|---|---|
| For a Serving Size of 100 grams (3.5 oz) | |
| Calories 66 | Calories from Fat 2.7(4.1%) |
| % Daily Value * | |
| Total Fat 0.3g | – |
| Saturated fat 0.1g | – |
| Monounsaturated fat 0.1g | – |
| Polyunsaturated fat 0.1g | – |
| Sodium 14mg | 1% |
| Potassium 278mg | – |
| Carbohydrates 16.8g | – |
| Net carbs 13.5g | – |
| Sugar 13.5g | – |
| Fiber 3.3g | 14% |
| Protein 1g | |
| Vitamins and minerals | |
| Vitamin A 0μg | 0% |
| Vitamin A IU 2IU | – |
| Vitamin B6 0.1mg | 5% |
| Vitamin B12 0μg | 0% |
| Vitamin C 20.6mg | 35% |
| Vitamin D 0μg | 0% |
| Vitamin D IU 0IU | – |
| Vitamin E 0.1mg | 1% |
| Vitamin K 0.4μg | 1% |
| Caffeine 0mg | – |
| Calcium 14mg | 2% |
| Iron 0.6mg | 8% |
| Magnesium 21mg | 6% |
| Phosphorus 27mg | 3% |
| Zinc 0.1mg | 1% |
| Copper 0.1mg | 5% |
| Selenium 0.6μg | 1% |
| Retinol 0μg | – |
| Lycopene 0μg | – |
| Thiamine 0.1mg | 5% |
| Riboflavin 0.1mg | 3% |
| Niacin 0.9mg | 5% |
| Folate 14μg | 4% |
| Choline 7.6mg | 2% |
| Water 81.2g | – |
| Fatty acids | |
| Amino acids | |
| Tryptophan 0g | – |
| Lysine 0.1g | – |
| Methionine 0g | – |
| * The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. | |
