Are eggplants the best food for killing colorectal cancer (CRC)? No, that's not true: no evidence suggests that consuming eggplant can prevent colorectal cancer.
The claim appeared in a TikTok video (archived here) published by user @livinggenius_on March 12, 2024. The caption in Korean, as translated into English by Lead Stories staff, reads :
The best food that kills all colorectal cancer. The abundant ingredients in this food will prevent colorectal cancer if you eat it like this. Drying this food will make the phytochemicals richer. Although the cell wall weakens and nutrients escape upon drying this food, one of the few nutrients that gets enriched is antioxidants, which can prevent various types of cancer and are especially good for colorectal cancer. Eggplants are very good for colorectal cancer if you dry them and drink them as tea.
This is what the post looked like on TikTok at the time of writing:
(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Thu Mar 28 16:56:53 2024 UTC)
Eggplant skin is known to have antioxidant properties (archived here). A study (archived here) published by Frontiers in Nutrition on July 12, 2021, concluded certain types of solanaceous vegetables, such as eggplant, are more likely to lower the chance of developing CRC. However, according to a Google Scholar search (archived here) conducted by Lead Stories on March 28, 2024, with keywords "dried eggplant AND colorectal cancer," there was not enough scientific evidence to support the video's claim that it is the "best food" for killing colorectal cancer. More research (archived here) is needed to determine how eggplants affect cancer.
Furthermore, when Lead Stories Staff conducted a Google search (archived here) with the keywords "diet to prevent colorectal cancer" in Korean, multiple hospital websites (archived here and here and here) did not mention eggplants as a part of the anti colorectal cancer diet.
According to the American Institute for Cancer Research, "no single food can protect you against cancer by itself." Although "research shows that a diet filled with a variety of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, beans, and other plant foods helps lower risk for many cancers," not a single food can "kill" any cancer.
