Common Sense Can Help Cut Your Cancer Risk

Do your daily habits carry you further away from cancer’s danger zone or push you closer?

When it comes to things that lead to cancer, we all know the dangers of smoking.  Smoking kills.  It is linked to at least 15 different types of cancer.

Fifteen!  If anyone has any sense whatsoever, one of their goals in life is to guard themselves from as many dangers as possible.  Not JUST for themselves – but for their loved ones as well.  Anyone who has a deadly habit such as smoking and doesn’t take every measure they can to quit is, in many ways, being selfish.  No one gets cancer, suffers, or even dies alone.  The victim’s loved ones walk through hell with them.

However, smoker’s aren’t the only ones who are putting themselves (and by extension, their families) at risk.  Did you know that obesity is a known cause of cancer?  We all know that being overweight leads to heart problems and increases one’s risk for diabetes – but cancer?

So how many cancers would you guess that obesity is linked to?  One?  Four?  Seven?

Being overweight is linked to at least a dozen types of cancer, including breast and pancreatic cancers.  The American Cancer Society stresses the need to get, and keep, your weight in check by eating right and getting enough exercise. Adults should be physically active for at least 30 minutes on five or more days a week.

Get that body moving and keep it moving.   When it isn’t moving, feed it the kinds of food it craves for good health:  lots of fruits and vegetables!   Fortunately one of the perks of exercising is often an automatic desire for the right kinds of food.  My oldest daughter, Emily, and I walked for an hour this morning.  When we dragged back in the house, we were both hungry for fruits.  I honestly would have crawled across glass for a slice of watermelon or a dish of peaches and cottage cheese.

They actually still sound pretty darn good. I know a couple of things I’ll be getting at the store tomorrow.

Think of some healthier things you can start doing.  Think of some unhealthy habits you can get rid of.  Then, act on each.  The kicker is this:  You have to keep on keeping on, even when you don’t want to whatsoever.   That’s when you have to dig deep and say, “I don’t want to walk, but I’m going to do it anyway.”  OR  “I want a Big Mac and fries, but I’ll have a salad and fruit  yogurt parfait  instead.”  You’ll feel so much better afterward.

~ Joi (“Joy”)