You may have heard about our Five Healthy Lifestyle
Habits to Reduce Cancer Risk, but have you taken a step toward following them?
Start your cancer-preventive journey by adopting these habits as your New
Year’s resolution.
1. Avoid Tobacco
Tobacco use is the number one preventable cause of
cancer. Tobacco, electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) and spit tobacco increase
your risk for many cancers. If you use tobacco and are ready to quit, call
Abbie Luzius, MS, CHES, CTTS, our Manager of Prevention & Wellness at
479-361-5847 to come up with a tobacco cessation plan that’s right for you.
2. Stay Safe in the Sun
Twenty percent of Americans will develop skin cancer at
some point in their lives, making it the most common cancer in the nation. Skin
cancer is also one of the easiest cancers to prevent. Use sunscreen, seek
shade, and wear sun-protective clothing, a hat and sunglasses to reduce your
risk.
3. Know Your Family History
Five to 10 percent of cancers are caused by gene
mutations from a parent (American Cancer Society). Knowing your family history
can help you and your doctor decide which cancer screening tests you need and
when you should start getting screened.
4. Get Your Cancer Screenings Regularly
Cancer screening tests increase the chances of finding
certain early-stage cancers, when they are easier to treat. For example, three
in five colorectal cancer deaths could be prevented with screening tests (Fight
Colorectal Cancer). The most common screenings available today test for breast,
colorectal, cervical, lung and skin cancers.
5. Maintain a Healthy Weight
Keeping or getting to a healthy weight lowers overall
cancer risk and also risk of recurrence in survivors. The American Cancer
Society estimates that nearly 1 in 10 cancers are caused by excess body
weight.
Exercise
Diet
– Eat the Rainbow
Get
plenty of rest
Practice
stress relief
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