How To Reduce Your Risk Of Getting Cancer
Cancer is famous for being that big scary word that no one wants to talk about, but it’s important to speak about it so we can figure out a cure for cancer. In the meantime, here are ways you can try and prevent it.
Protect yourself from the sun
Skin cancer is a very common form of cancer because it can be caused by the sun. This is why you should always wear sunscreen. Not just in the summer days though – in the evening, when the clouds are out, when it’s raining – even in the winter when the sun is nowhere to be seen. Harmful UV rays are everywhere, all the time. You can get UV exposure from your computer screen, or the lights in your house. So replace sunscreen with your daily moisturiser.
Eat a healthy diet
Eat plenty of fruit and vegetables that are packed full of antioxidants, as these protect the body from any damage that has been caused by harmful molecules called free radicals – which are also found in cancer. This won’t stop you from getting cancer, but it may reduce your risk. Another good tip is to go organic. Whether it says it on the packet or not, regular fruit and veg are covered in chemicals to help them grow bigger or shine greener. Organic is completely naturally grown – better for your body.
Be physically active
If you’re active, that means you are stimulating your muscles, joints, and bones, which also means you are able to maintain a healthy weight. Generally, the fitter you are (health wise) the lower your chances are of getting cancer because you’re looking after your body and giving it everything it needs to stay healthy and fight off illnesses.
Don’t smoke
This is no secret. Smoking is bad for you in general, but definitely has a big role to play when it comes to cancers like larynx, mouth, lung, throat, cervix, bladder, kidney and pancreas. Even the act of chewing tobacco is still a no go.
You should always stay away from others that are smoking too, as the secondhand smoke may be able to slightly increase your risk.
Regular tests
If a certain type of cancer runs in your family, let’s say breast cancer, then you will be at a higher risk of having it in the future as it may be in your gene. This is why it’s important to have regular genetic testing for cancer so that if ever there were a change in your body and something was starting to form, it would be caught extremely early on because you were getting regular check-ups.
Examine yourself
If you’re not too sure how to do this, look at some videos or read some articles online. Or if you want to be 100% sure you’re doing it right – make an appointment with your Doctor and ask them to show you.
It is so important to examine ourselves, and yet so many people overlook this, but it’s so simple to do, and it only takes a minute, so there really shouldn’t be any excuse. If you end up feeling a lump or bump that you’re not too sure about – go to your Doctor.
