Exercise for Cancer Prevention
There’s no denying it now, studies have shown that exercise is a very important factor in guarding you against the many types of cancer.
Most cancers are caused by lifestyle factors…not genes. What this means to you is that you can take steps to prevent the chance of cancer appearing in your life.
It’s a sad truth but up to 1/3 of cancer related deaths are caused by obesity and leading a sedentary lifestyle. Physical activity lowers the risk by preventing obesity, reducing inflammation, improving insulin resistance and improving immune system function.
You can be proactive and reduce both your waistline and your cancer risk at the same time.
Exercise and breast cancer has been studied extensively. Studies have shown that women who exercise have a 30-40 percent lower risk of developing breast cancer than their sedentary friends. Research found that strenuous exercise, more than 5 hours a week lowered the risk of this invasive cancer. Exercise lowers blood estrogen which is a good thing since women with high estrogen levels have increased risks for breast cancer. Preventing breast cancer through exercise is a powerful way for any women to take charge of her health.
Colorectal cancer has also been extensively studied in relation to physical activity. Exercise has been shown to play a dramatic role in the prevention of colon and rectum cancer as well. It’s scary to think that 150,000 people will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer this year with nearly 50,000 deaths. This effect is seen in both men and women although the effect is greater in men.
Uterine cancer; research has shown that active women have a 38% to 46% reduced risk of developing this cancer because exercise lowers obesity and estrogen levels…both factors in uterine cancer development.
Lung cancer: people who exercise regularly are less likely to develop lung cancer.
Exercise is a very prominent component to warding off cancer and other deadly diseases but we are not talking about a couple of minutes a day of easy to moderate exercise. You must make a significant commitment of at least 30 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise beyond what you normally do 5 or more days a week and if you can fit in 45-60 minutes that’s even better.
When your health becomes your priority, fitting exercise into your daily routine is fairly easy. You may have to get up ½ hour earlier but it can be done. You should also look for opportunities throughout the day to get some extra exercise as well such as walking when possible or climbing stairs.
Let’s face it sitting in front of the TV all day watching reality shows is doing nothing to improve your health. If that sentence defines you then you need to commit to some serious lifestyle changes.
Physical activity does reduce your risk of cancer and every small step counts. Exercise is empowering. Be sure to pick a variety of activities some of which are not reliant on the weather as excuses are too easy to make.
You should also find and identify facilities in your community that are freely available for you to use. Most communities offer parks that have outdoor exercise areas that are great when weather permits.
I’ve created a cancer risk test that you can take that will reveal to you how vulnerable you may be to this dreaded disease in your future. It’s no cost and only takes 60 seconds, well worth your time.