The 10 Lifestyle Tips For Cancer Prevention

The WebMD cited these 10 diet and activity recommendations highlighted during the meeting of the American Diabetic Association (ADA). The following are:

1. Be as lean as possible without becoming underweight. Check your waist. It is recommended that men's waists be no larger than 37 inches and women's waists be 31.5 inches or less.

2. Be physically active for at least 30 minutes every day.

3. Avoid sugary drinks, and limit consumption of high-calorie foods, especially those low in fiber and rich in fat or added sugar. It is suggested to fill up on fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.

4. Eat more of a variety of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and legumes (such as beans).

5. Limit consumption of red meats (including beef, pork, and lamb) and avoid processed meats.

6. If you drink alcohol, limit your daily intake to two drinks for men and one drink for women.

7. Limit consumption of salty foods and food processed with salt (sodium). Don't go over 2,400 milligrams per day, and use herbs and spices instead. Additionally, processed foods account for most sodium intake nowadays -- not salt you add when cooking or eating.

8. Don't use supplements to try to protect against cancer. It's not that supplements are bad -- they may be "valuable" apart from cancer prevention, but there isn't evidence that they protect against cancer, except for vitamin D (according to K. Collins).

9. It's best for mothers to exclusively breastfeed their babies for up to six months and then add other liquids and foods.

10. After treatment, cancer survivors should follow the recommendations for cancer prevention. Survivors include people undergoing cancer treatment, as well as people who have finished their cancer treatment.

These tips are about reducing -- but not eliminating -- cancer risk. Many factors, including genes and environmental factors, affect cancer risk; diet and exercise aren't the whole story, but they're within your power to change.

source:
WebMD
Miranda Hitti
Karen Collins, MS, RD, CND

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Prostate Cancer

There are many people, well of course men, are affected by this disease, prostate cancer, all over the world.

Prostate cancer is cancer of the small walnut-shaped gland in males that produces seminal fluid, the fluid that nourishes and transports sperm. This is one of the most common type of cancer in men. A diagnosis of prostate cancer can be scary not only because it can be life-threatening, but also because treatments can cause side effects such as bladder control problems and erectile dysfunction (impotence). But today, the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer have gotten much better.

Prostate cancer usually grows slowly and initially remains confined to the prostate gland, where it may not cause serious harm. While some types of prostate cancer grow slowly and may need minimal or no treatment, other types are aggressive and can spread quickly. If prostate cancer is detected early — when it's still confined to the prostate gland — you have a better chance of successful treatment.

The picture on the left side is my father, Bart. He is one of the million of men affected by prostate cancer. At first, he didn't notice he had the disease. Everything was normal. Until one day, he felt pain and burning on urination. Days past, severe rump pain attacked, he's been chilling and shivering. Everybody got panic and somebody called for assistance. My mother immediately brought him to the nearest hospital, Nassau Community Hospital in Longbeach, New York. In the hospital, he was cared and medicated. Thanks to the dedicated nurses and doctors who took care of my father. He went through series of test: PSA (prostate-specific antigen) test and DRE (digital rectal exam), biopsy and a lot more tests. Finally, the doctor concluded that my father is positive for prostate cancer. Although the cancer is still encapsulated or localized, meaning the cancer cell has not spread beyond the prostate gland, he still need to undergo therapies to treat and eventually kill the cancer cells.

Now, my father is still undergoing his radiation therapy - the External Beam radiation therapy, in which a machine aims high-energy rays at the cancer, at the Nassau Community Hospital. The goal of radiation therapy is to damage the cancer cells and stop their growth or kill them. This works because the rapidly dividing (reproducing) cancer cells are more vulnerable to destruction by the radiation than are the neighboring normal cells. The treatment for my father is about 44 days, so his radiation therapy will be completed on 22nd July this month.

Knowing the diagnosis of my father really shocked and wrecked us, the whole family. But we put all our trusts to God knowing that He has a purpose in everything that happen in our individual life. We know my father can recover from the devastating disease, cancer, by trusting the Lord for his recovery. We believe that prayer can move mountains and everything is possible in God's name.

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