Dr. Ted Cooper Former US assistant health secretary

... Though scientists do not all agree till now on the relationship between  illness and nutrition, but evidence is mounting and there is a general consensus that the quality and quantity of  foods we consume in our affluent society and our sedentary lifestyle are the main factors  causing many forms of cancer, cardiovascular and other degenerative diseases ...

Important note

The foods listed below should be avoided in general. For your current health condition you might have to avoid other foods which normally would be considered healthy.

For example, if you have diarrhea or a bleeding ulcer, you should avoid lettuce among many other foods that are otherwise considered healthy.

Sugar

This is the worst food ever. It gradually lowers the body's immunity and leaves it susceptible to infections by germs and other diseases

Fast foods

These foods comprise the main part of the Standard American Diet, often referred to as the SAD diet. It is rich in saturated fats and cholesterol. It is the cause of many diseases including heart disease

Highly refined foods with no fiber

Constipation is the root cause of many diseases. Lack of fiber in diet is the primary cause of constipation. The SAD diet consists primarily of refined foods (white bread, white rice and meats).

Canned foods especially canned meats

All canned foods have substantial amounts of chemical additives. These additives have known and unknown side effects, especially when they are combined together, as in the case of canned foods.

How many products that contain these additives have been pulled off the shelves when it was proven that they cause cancer or other ailments?

Genetically modified foods

This is the most insidious, because it is difficult to differentiate between regular and genetically modified foods. These products have some known and some yet-unknown effects on our bodies.

Hydrogenated oils (margarine)

... Commercial oil is processed by cooking corn oil in water at high temperature and then crushing it and treating it with lye and bleach. The oil is reheated in a vacuum for twelve hours to deodorize it. Finally, a synthetic antioxidant is added to prevent spoilage. To make margarine, the refined oil is saturated with hydrogen to solidify it ...

Michio Kushi, The Macrobiotic Way

Heavily fertilized produce

The purpose of chemical fertilizers is to make crops grow faster and bigger, a YIN phenomenon. These crops when consumed heavily cause a break down in health and a lower immunity. Immunity is YANG and YIN breaks it down.

Synthesized vitamin and mineral supplements

Alcohol

All alcoholic substances are extremely YIN elements. That is why people who drink heavily are characterized by having red noses and red faces in general. Alcohol gradually breaks down the body immunity levels causing many diseases including liver cirrhosis.

Ice cream

The bones are the most YANG (hard) of all organs. Expansive YIN foods, such as sugar and ice cream, antagonize and eventually corrode YANG elements such as bones. The most destructive of foods to the bones are sugar and acid-forming foods. Before developing a polio vaccine, polio used to spread during the summer months when people consume lots of sugar and sweets in the form of ice cream.