Behavioural & Dietary Change - Key to Beating Cancer

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has reported that cancers are among the leading causes of death worldwide, accounting for 8.2million deaths in 2012 which is a rise from 7.6million in 2008.

The most common causes of cancer death are cancers of the Lung (1.59million deaths), Liver (745.000), Stomach (723.000), Colorectal (694.000), Breast (521.000) and Oesophageal (400.000).

WHO says about 30% of cancer deaths are due to the 5 leading behavioural and dietary risks which are; high body mass index, low fruit and vegetable intake, lack of physical activity, tobacco use and alcohol use. Tobacco use is the most important risk factor for cancer, causing 22% of global cancer deaths and about 71% of global lung cancer deaths. It's clearly evident that the risk of cancers can be drastically trimmed down if we change some of our bad habits. Cancer is definitely beatable in this light.

Cancer causing viral infections such as Hepatitis B (HBV), Hepatitis C (HCV) and Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) are responsible for up to 20% of cancer deaths in low- and middle-income countries. Cervical cancer which is caused by HPV is a leading cause of cancer death among women in low-income countries.

 Estimated Cancer Incidence and Mortality – GLOBOCAN 2012

	Men Cases	Men Deaths	Women Cases	Women Deaths
World	7 427 000	4 653 000	6 663 000	3 548 000
More Developed regions	3 244 000	1 591 000	2 832 000	1 287 000
Less Developed regions	4 184 000	3 062 000	3 831 000	2 261 000
WHO Africa region (AFRO)	265 000	205 000	381 000	250 000
WHO Americas region (PAHO)	1 454 000	677 000	1 429 000	618 000
WHO East Mediterranean region (EMRO)	263 000	191 000	293 000	176 000
WHO Europe region (EURO)	1 987 000	1 080 000	1 750 000	852 000
WHO South-East Asia region (SEARO)	816 000	616 000	908 000	555 000
WHO Western Pacific region (WPRO)	2 642 000	1 882 000	1 902 000	1 096 000
IARC Membership–24countries	3 706 000	1 900 000	3 354 000	1 570 000
United States of America	825 000	342 000	779 000	293 000
China	1 823 000	1 429 000	1 243 000	776 000
India	477 000	357 000	537 000	326 000
European Union (EU-28)	1 446 000	715 000	1 211 000	560 000

More than 60% of the world’s total new annual cases occur in Africa, Asia, Central and South America. These regions account for 70% of the world’s cancer deaths.

Tobacco Use

Source: modifylifestyle.com

“Smoking is by far the most important preventable cause of cancer,” says Cancer Research UK adding that smoking accounts for more than one in four UK cancer deaths and nearly a fifth of all cancer cases. Smoking increases the risk of lung cancer as well as of 14 others including cancers of the larynx (voice box), oesophagus (gullet), mouth and pharynx (throat), bladder, pancreas, kidney, liver, stomach, bowel, cervix, ovary, nose and sinus, breast and some types of leukaemia.

Children are mostly affected by passive smoking because they breathe faster than adults.

Alcohol Use

A 2011 review by Cancer Research UK suggest around 4% cancers are linked to alcohol. High alcohol intake increases the risk of mouth, liver, breast, bowel and throat cancers. In the UK for example, people have adopted a frequent casual drinking culture which in most cases turns to ‘binge drinking’ and is highly risky to one’s health. The National Health Services (NHS) recommends the following; Men should not regularly drink more than 3-4 units of alcohol per day and for women it's no more than 2-3 units. It also recommends that if you've had a heavy drinking session, you must avoid alcohol for 48 hours. One ‘unit’ equals 10ml or 8g or pure alcohol. ‘Regularly’ means drinking this amount everyday or most days of the week.

Source: drinkaware.co.uk

Smoking and drinking together raises the risk of these cancers far more than the effects of either drinking or smoking alone.

Diet

Fruit and Vegetables – Your 5 a day

A study by Cancer Research showed that people who eat the widest range of fruit and vegetables have 22% lower risk of mouth cancer than those with the narrowest range. However these should not be taken as supplements but as real fruit and vegetables. “Fruit and vegetables are a good source of natural fibre and there is strong evidence that high levels of fibre reduce bowel cancer.” Eating plenty of fruit and vegetables can help you maintain a healthy body weight.

Red and Processed Meat

Medical experts have advised to desist from eating lots of red or processed meat because it increases the risk of bowel cancer. The meats contain a red pigment called haem which can irritate or damage the cells in the bowel. Red meat which include all fresh, minced and frozen beef, pork or lamb may also cause pancreatic and stomach cancers. Processed meat includes ham, bacon, salami, sausages, spam, conned beef, pate and tinned meat. A report from Cancer Research suggests around a quarter of bowel cancer cases in men and around one sixth in women are linked to eating red or processed meat.

Consequentially, processed meat is more strongly linked to cancer risk than red meat due to the compounds i.e. nitrites and nitrates; which are used to preserve the meat. There is some evidence that the effects of haem could be countered by chlorophyll, found in green vegetables. It is advised not to take more than 100g of meat a day. White meat is healthier than red meat.

Fish

Eating lots of fish (particularly oily fish like salmon, trout,  mackerel) may lower the risk of bowel cancer.

Fibre rich foods

A review showed that eating 10g of fibre per day can reduce the risk of bowel cancer by around 10%. Examples of food rich in fibre are whole grains cereals and bread, brown rice and pulses. Fibre triggers the production of helpful chemicals and increases the frequency of bowel movements.

Salt

A diet with lots of salt increases one’s risk of stomach cancer by damaging the lining of the stomach and causing inflammation, or by making the stomach lining more sensitive to carcinogens such as nitrates. Countries such as Japan where people eat a lot of salt, pickled and smoked foods have a high rate of stomach cancer. A diet with no more than 6g of salt each day is recommended.

Animal Fats

Eat less animal fats for example butter, cream, cheese.

Cooking Methods

Boiling or braising meat is much healthier than cooking it at very high temperatures like barbeque or grilling which can cause the meat to produce harmful chemicals such as heterocyclic amines and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons many of which cause cancer. It is better not to fry foods and if you use fats in cooking, choose vegetable oils or olive oil; not lard or butter.

High Body Mass Index

According to the American Cancer Society (ACS), overweight or obese people have an increased risk of bowel and pancreatic cancers and this could be because they tend to have higher insulin levels. Obese means being more than 25% overweight. The ACS goes on to say having too much belly fat (that is a larger waistline) regardless of body weight, is linked with an increased risk of colon and rectal cancer, and is probably linked to a higher risk of cancers of the pancreas, endometrium, and breast cancer in women past menopause. Obesity may also lead to oesophageal, kidney, and gallbladder cancers.

It’s essential to frequently check one’s body mass index to make sure you maintain it at the right level. Exercise and frequent physical activities will help you maintain a healthy body weight. 

Viruses

Viruses can help to cause some cancers. These cancers and viruses are linked;

Cancers	Virus
Cervical cancer and other cancers of the genital and anal area	HPV
Primary liver cancer	HBV, HCV
Lymphomas	Epstein-Barr
T cell leukaemia in adults	Human T cell leukaemia
Oropharyngeal cancer and non menoloma skin cancers in some people	HPV

However, many people can be infected with a cancer causing virus, and never get cancer.

Genetic Predisposition

Hereditary cancers are primarily caused by an inherited genetic defect. According to Macmillan Cancer Support, it’s thought that about 5-10% of cases may be linked to inherited genes. “Scientists have discovered cancer susceptibility genes for some of the more common cancers that can run in families such as breast, bowel, ovary and womb. There are other cancers such as prostate, pancreatic and testicular which may run in families, but specific cancer susceptibility genes for these cancers haven’t been identified yet”, they said.

Age

Age is the single biggest risk factor for cancer. The older you are the more likely you are to develop cancer because the longer we live, the more cancer causing faults we accumulate in our DNA. Nearly two thirds of all cases of cancer diagnosed in the UK occur in people aged over 65 years. Macmillan Cancer Support reported that age is the strongest risk factor for prostate cancer citing that men under 50 years of age were at a lesser risk. Similarly, the risk factor of developing breast cancer also increases with age.

Ultra-violet (UV) Radiation

The American Cancer Society says skin cancer is the most common of all cancers in the United States of America (USA) accounting for nearly half of all cancers in the US. The main cause is exposure to ultra-violet radiation from the sun as well as sunlamps and sun-beds (tanning beds and booths). Most modern Ultra Violet (UV) tanning beds emit more than 95% UVA rays. UV light damages the DNA of our skin cells and can cause skin cancer. So this is food for thought for you the next time you decide on getting that 'trendy tan'. It's not a fashion or beauty statement but a skin damage statement  and can increase the risk of skin cancer. Next time you go for that long awaited summer holiday, make sure you protect yourself from the sun by wearing a hat, sunglasses, putting on some sun-screen and staying in the shade. A trip to the tanning booth is not a good idea after all.