Cancer can be prevented. Harmful habits that you must give up in order not to get sick

Cancer can be prevented in many situations. From healthy eating to vaccination, exercise, and smoking cessation, there are many steps you can take to reduce your risk of getting sick.

Fortunately, most cancer risk factors are preventable. In other words, it is in our power to protect ourselves from this disease. We just have to want it!

Find out below what you can do to prevent cancer.

Smoking, associated with the appearance of 12 types of cancer

Every time you smoke, you inhale no less than 250 chemicals, 70% of which are carcinogenic.

Smoking is not the only cause of lung cancer. Another 12 cancers, such as stomach, bladder, kidney, mouth or throat cancer, are associated with this addiction.

So quit smoking. The sooner the better for your health!

Crucifixes, vegetables that keep cancer at bay

We all know that healthy eating is one of the main steps we can take to prevent cancer. But not everyone knows what “healthy eating” means. Fewer of us know what “healthy portion” means.

Foods with proven anticancer effects include fruits and vegetables rich in fiber, vitamins and minerals with antioxidant and antitumor effect.

Examples of such foods are: broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, kale, lettuce and the whole range of berries – raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, currants, etc.

Don’t rely on supplements to protect you from cancer

In the virtual environment there is a whole plethora of articles that promote various so-called anticancer supplements. But at the moment there is no scientific information to prove their effectiveness in terms of cancer prevention or treatment.

Moreover, some “natural” supplements produce drug interactions, both with some cytostatics and with other drugs that the cancer patient may have in the treatment regimen, such as anticoagulants.

Grapefruit juice, St. John’s wort, curcumin are the best known natural substances that are metabolized by the same enzyme apparatus with many drugs, including chemotherapeutics, and may decrease their effectiveness or potentiate side effects.

A woman with tetrachromia, who can see 100 million colors, gave birth to a child with color blindness

No excess alcohol, meat and sausages

Excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages, semi-processed foods and red meat is associated with an increased risk of developing various forms of cancer (mouth, breast, esophagus, colon, liver, stomach, etc.).

Also, these habits are often the trigger for cardiovascular disease due to obesity and the accumulation of atheroma plaque on the blood vessels. And obesity, in turn, is a major risk factor involved in pancreatic cancer and more.

Studies show that excess body fat “feeds” tumor cells. Opt for lean meat, fish, moderate alcohol and more exercise (at least 30 minutes every day), actions that help you maintain optimal body weight, but also keep cancer at bay.

Protect yourself from skin cancer by using sunscreen

Melanoma, one of the most aggressive forms of skin cancer, can be largely prevented by using sunscreen when exposed to the sun.

Apply a product with a minimum protection factor of 30 on exposed skin. And during the summer, when the ultraviolet rays reach their maximum potential, choose a cream with SPF 50+ for more protection.

Don’t forget the other measures you can take to prevent skin cancer: avoid sun exposure between 11-18, stay under an umbrella, wear a sun hat.

Use a condom and get vaccinated

Unprotected sex is the leading cause of sexually transmitted diseases. However, some of these increase the risk of cancer.

For example, about 70% of cervical cancers are caused by sexually transmitted HPV infection (strains 16 and 18). Some hepatitis viruses are also transmitted through unprotected sex, causing liver cancer.

To avoid this, always use a condom! But the best form of protection is offered by vaccination.

The HPV vaccine, for example, protects you from cancer of the neck, vulva, vagina or anus (you can read more about the HPV vaccine here). And the hepatitis B vaccine protects you from the virus that causes liver cancer (this vaccine is part of the mandatory childhood vaccination schedule).

Know your family history and don’t miss regular doctor visits

Some cancers can be inherited in the family or, rather, certain “defective” genes can be passed on to children, increasing their risk of developing a cancer.

If you have cancer in your family, it would be good to use various genetic tests or periodic screening tests after the age of 40, in order to detect possible genetic abnormalities in time.

A colonoscopy, for example, is indicated by the American Cancer Society from the age of 45, especially if there are risk factors for colorectal cancer.

The Babes Pap test is mandatory for any woman who has begun her sexual life, and mammography can detect breast cancer in its early stages, when treatment options have a much higher rate of efficacy.

The facial reconstruction of a woman who died 2,600 years ago reveals “a beautiful young woman.” Shep-en-Isis’s mummy and sarcophagus hid extraordinary details.

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