'Superfruits' will not stave off disease.

• Position: Cancer - Brief article

If an apple a day keeps the doctor away, can drinking noni or pomegranate juice, popping acai palm berry supplements, or munching on wolfberries ward off cancer? Probably not, indicates David Euhus, professor of surgery at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, and specialist in cancer genetics and risk assessment. So-called "superfruits" marketed by companies for their supposedly high nutritional and antioxidant content really have no documented impact on keeping cancer at bay in humans.

"There's really no 'superfood' that's been proven to reduce the risk of cancer. The antioxidants in clinical trials have not shown an effect on cancer rates."

While some animal studies have linked eating certain foods with cancer reduction, those results have not been duplicated in human trials. Certain vegetables--such as cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, and broccoli--have nutritional content that Euhus finds...