Cancer can hit anyone. Yes, there are risk factors that increase someone’s chance of getting cancer. Whether you have those risk factors or not, you should do things that will help you with preventing cancer. One of the greatest things you can do in this regard is to have a better diet. When you eat the right foods, you can lower your risk of getting cancer. There are even some guidelines for nutrition that help you preventing cancer. These guidelines are similar to preventing other diseases as well.
Healthy Weight
If you are obese or even overweight, your risk of getting cancer is greater. While there is no direct result of being overweight and getting cancer, studies do show that many people who develop cancer were overweight. If you are overweight, working towards a healthier weight is a good idea. Some of the cancers that are most associated with being overweight or obese including prostate, liver, gallbladder, thyroid, kidney, rectal and esophageal.
Nutrient Dense and Lower Calorie Foods
When you are planning your meals, you should focus on nutrient dense foods that are lower in calories. These are the types of foods that will help you in preventing cancer. When you lower the intake for foods that have added fats and sugars, you become healthier. Foods such as desserts, snacks that have been processed and sugar beverages are bad for you when trying to prevent cancer. Additionally, those foods have a lot of calories in them and will add up quickly. This can cause weight gain which discussed above notes a higher risk of cancer.
Legumes, Fruits, Vegetables and Whole Grains
When you plan meals for preventing cancer, you should have a lot of vegetables, fruits, whole grains and legumes. When you eat these kinds of foods you reduce your risk for colon, stomach, esophageal, oral and lung cancers. There isn’t too much research to show exactly what specific fruits and vegetables will help in preventing against specific cancers so vary what you eat. Try out different vegetables in each meal. Additionally, make sure half the plate for each meal is filled with vegetables and fruits and one-quarter of the plate with whole grains. When getting your vegetables, be sure to get enough peas and beans.
Moderation in Meat
If you want to prevent cancer, you need to have moderation in meat. There have been studies done that show a correlation between eating meat and getting colon cancer. This is generally when someone eats a lot of meat; especially meats like hot dogs, bacon and ham. If you enjoy your meats make sure you are only eating them in moderation and choose meats that are in the lean protein category. Just remember that most of your protein should come from beans.
Keep a Limitation to Alcohol
If you are a drinker of beer or other alcoholic drinks, you need to keep a limitation to your alcohol consumption if you want to prevent cancer. Some evidence shows that any type of alcoholic beverage could raise your risk of getting cancer. Alcohol is harmful to the body and when it does its damage, it is done. If you are going to drink alcohol make sure to limit it to only two drinks a day at the most.
Less Salt Intake
Another thing you must pay attention to if you want to prevent cancer is having less salt intake. In many places around the world, salt intake is way higher than the recommended amount. Many foods have too much salt in them and yet, people eat them anyways. It might seem impossible to completely eliminate your salt intake but you should at least reduce it. Most salt will come from the processed foods. Take a look at a nutrition label between two similar items and choose the one with lower sodium. You should only have between 1,500 and 2,300 milligrams of salt a day.
Taking Supplements
There can’t be any direct proof of taking supplements helping you to lower your cancer risk. However, studies have shown that making sure you get enough vitamins will help in the reduction of cancer risk. It isn’t going to harm you to take a daily supplement. Ultimate Man Once Daily supplements are a great place to start.
When preventing cancer, these are the tips you should start with. Pay attention to your diet and you can start preventing cancer today.
