Philip J. Goscienski, M.D.
January 2006
Some cancers are inevitable but those are in the minority; at least 70 percent of cancers, probably more, are lifestyle related. Scientists no longer argue about whether the factors that I have listed below cause cancer. They are now trying to understand the details of how they trigger the wild growth of cells that shorten our lives and drain our resources.
As a group, cancers are the second leading cause of death in the United States. You can avoid or postpone most of them by making only minor changes in your diet and your daily routine.
A half century has passed since Drs. Doll and Hill of the United Kingdom linked lung cancer to smoking. Fifty years earlier cancer of the lung was so uncommon that my oldest textbook doesn't even mention it. This cancer is now the leading cause of cancer death among both men and women. Unfortunately for so many of us, quitting smoking may not seem to be a 'minor change' in habit as I suggested. Considering that smoking is also a primary factor in cancer of the bladder and in coronary artery disease - the leading cause of death - the effort is certainly worthwhile
How many of the following lifestyle factors could you change if they could give you several years of worry-free good health?
Could you lose 20 or 30 pounds in a year or two? Being overweight not only adds to the risk of getting cancer, it also makes cancer harder to diagnose and to treat. Persons who are frankly obese are very likely to develop type 2 diabetes, a double-whammy where cancer is concerned. Obesity and cancer are definitely related, and so are cancer and high blood sugar levels. Diabetes raises the risk of cancer by 27 percent in men and 31 percent in women. The higher the blood sugar level, the higher the risk. Only one hour of brisk walking 4 or 5 days a week will keep diabetes at bay and help you to trim away some body fat. Can you handle that?
Red meat, cured meat and barbecued meat are among America's favorite foods. Unfortunately they contain several substances that are clearly cancer-causing. The lower the intake of these foods, the lower the incidence of colon and other cancers. Cooking meat at high temperatures increases the levels of specific cancer-causing agents called HCAs or heterocyclic amines. You don't need to become a vegetarian, just use lean cuts of meat, cook them slowly and avoid charring.
Speaking of vegetables, they just happen to be one of your best offensive weapons in the fight against cancer. Before they became good at hunting, early humans ate mostly plant foods in a wondrous variety. That's a clue. Our limited selection of supermarket fruits and vegetables would be pretty boring to our Stone Age ancestors. They had hundreds of plants to choose from, giving them the benefit of thousands of different antioxidants. Nutrients that include alpha- and beta-carotene, lycopene, lutein, sulphoraphane and even chlorophyll offer protection against cancer. Adding more fruits and vegetables to your diet will be one of your easiest lifestyle changes.
Can you live with these recommendations? Let's teach them to our children from their earliest years so that they don't have to unlearn bad habits.
Philip J. Goscienski, M.D. is the author of Health Secrets of the Stone Age, Better Life Publishers 2005. Contact him at drphil@stoneagedoc.com.