Lifestyle & Cancer Risk
- During COVID-19, some people may have been decreasing their amount of exercise, drinking more than usual, and eating unhealthier.
- Diet and exercise is linked to cancer risk.
- An expert tells SurvivorNet that exercises decreases your cancer risk while eating high carbs and sugar increase your risk.
Since the outbreak caused gyms to close and forced people to shelter-in-place, it’s not always easy to get motivated and work exercise into our daily lives. Instead, you may have opted to switch out their weights for wine bottles. Although there’s been no scientific evidence to prove a certain diet or amount of exercise causes or prevents cancer, there is a definite link. However, among those who exercised regularly, their risk of being diagnosed with breast cancer dropped by 12%.
Read MoreDue to the outbreak taking up a lot of our attention, some of us may be putting our daily health on the back burner. In the past, you may have packed a healthy lunch during the workday and hit the gym after. Now, coming up with at-home workouts and three meals a day may deter some of you from taking your personal health more seriously.
Related: Major Reduction in Cancer Risk by Following Old Standbys Diet and Exercise
“Physicians are worried,” Dr Yeo says. “The last pandemic [1918 Spanish Flu] life expectancy in the US went down for everyone, not just those who got sick. Some of that is because people aren't always getting the preventive care they need because they are afraid to come in. We want people to get preventive maintenance. Some of it is because people are worried about the future and aren't taking care of their own health. People are worried about finances [and] putting food on the table. Health seems a long way off.”
Guidance to Stay Healthy
Working out and being nutritious doesn’t need to be difficult. In order to stay healthy, something very important during this time, taking a little time out of your day can make a huge difference. Here are a few tips to be proactive:
- Take a little time to work out. This could be a walk around the block or light yoga class.
- Incorporate more fruits and vegetables into your diet.
- Cut down on alcohol intake. Moderation is key.
- Try substituting foods with sugar and carbs with healthier alternatives.
- Get up and move a few times a day.
Krista Maruschak explains how cutting “pro inflammatory” foods can decrease cancer risk
Diet’s Link To Disease
The main benefit of a healthy diet is reducing inflammation, which helps reduce cancer risk. Normally, when the body recognizes something that could be potentially dangerous (such as alcohol), inflammation helps the immune system fight them off. However, if your body has high levels of inflammation, that’s where there can be health issues. Chronic inflammation is linked to several diseases including heart disease, diabetes, arthritis and Alzheimer's. It can also lead to cancer.
Related: Cutting "Pro-Inflammatory" Foods From Your Diet Can Reduce Cancer Risk
“What we really want people to focus on is something called an anti-inflammatory diet,” Krista Maruschak, a registered dietitian at the Cleveland Clinic Cancer Center, tells SurvivorNet. “When I say anti-inflammatory diet, this is really a whole meal pattern that’s going to decrease somebody’s risk for cancer in the future. Inflammation in the body can cause a whole host of health conditions and co-morbidities, and inflammation is really increased by what we call a pro-inflammatory diet. Things that are pro-inflammatory in your diet are going to be refined carbohydrates as well as high fat, saturated fat meats, processed meats, things like that.”
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