Sour Sop – An anti-cancer miracle

One of the best bits of my childhood was going back to my village in Eastern Nigeria on holiday. It was a time filled with long walks, laughter and camaraderie.  Years later, I realize that it was also an important time because I got to learn a great deal about nature.

In my mother’s village, a fruit we were sure to get and gorge ourselves on was Soursop (which we called Shawa Shop). This fruit is not as easy to find in Lagos so it was a matter of eating enough until the next visit, a year later. The reason why it is not easy to find is that transporting the fruit is not easy because of its irregular shape and how soft it gets when ripe. 

This week, I went to Lagos Island and right there on Balogun street there was a lady selling Soursop. I bought what I could carry. As I ate it at home, I was transported back to Aguata, Nanka where my mother is from. 

For those that don’t know what this fruit is and what its benefits are, this post is dedicated to you.

Apart from the fact that this fruit is a delight to eat, recent studies have shown that it packs a punch when it comes to keeping us healthy and possibly cancer free. It is able to do this because it contains some Acetogenins.

Annonaceous Acetogenin in the Soursop tree are “. . . not only are effective in killing tumors that have proven resistant to anti-cancer agents, but also seem to have a special affinity for such resistant cells.” 

That means that it seeks out the tumors that are resistant to some anti-cancer medication or other compound and kills them. That is as close to perfection as it can get. It is also reported to do this without the normal toxicity that comes with other anti-cancer drugs which lead to hair loss, weight loss, the killing of other healthy cell which will then eventually lead to weakened immunity.

These naturally-occurring acetogenins are produced in the leaf, stem, bark and fruit seeds of the Sour Sop tree. It is

The wonderful thing is that the Soursop tree produces Annonaceous acetogenin in its leaf and stem, bark, and fruits seeds so the entire tree is a cancer fighting machine. It is a wonder we don’t all have a Sour Sop tree in our backyards.

As with all things, if you decide to use soursop for anything other than as a refreshing fruit, ensure that you only do so with a qualified medical practitioner’s help. 

To give a balanced view, read about some of the side effects: http://health.howstuffworks.com/wellness/natural-medicine/herbal-remedies/graviola2.htm

Reference Material

Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry, Volume 10, Issue 3, March 2002, Pages 561-565

Related Posts
Shopping Cart
Scroll to Top