11 ways you can reduce the risk of disease and cancer

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1. Exercise 5-6 days a week (30-60 minutes moderate activity - i.e. CARDIO)  NOTE: running marathons and athletic competition is NOT a cancer deterrant because over-exercising produces free radicals which are thought to have a part in the DNA mutations which allow cancer growth.) Cardio is any repeated motion with the large muscles of the body sustained for 30 minutes or more to raise the heart rate and keep it there.  Cardio is sometimes referred to as exercising "IN OXYGEN"  (cuts risks of all disease by 40 percent)
  • What counts as cardio exercise
    • bicycling for 30 minutes
    • swimming and water aerobics
    • Richard Simmons or Kelly Bliss aerobics tapes
    • walking at about 2.5 to 3 miles an hour
    • elliptical cross trainer or healthrider or gazelle freestyle or Nordic track or stationary bicycle
    • the amazing TRIKKE
    • TaeBo or spinning or running (but only for the advanced - if you cannot talk while doing these, slow down and train up!)
  • What doesn't count as cardio (good exercise but it's anerobic rather than aerobic and if done in excess, is probably not real protective against heart disease and cancer)
    • gardening
    • housework
    • shopping in the mall if you keep stopping at stores
    • a job where you move around a lot (unless you are a mail carrier - that's enough walking to be cardio)
    • playing volleyball or basketball
    • gymnastics or competition figure skating
  • Yoga is great for flexibility and stretching and should be included in a good exercise program but should be done in addition to cardio.

2. Eat 5 or more portions of fruits and vegetables a day.  There is a large body of evidence which shows that vegetables contain chemicals which kill cancer cells and strengthen the immune system.  (note: there is some evidence that "juicing" furnishes the vitamins of fresh fruits and veggies - you still need to EAT veggies in addition for the roughage)

3. Take 60 mg or more of CoEnzyme Q10 daily ("Nature Made" is a good brand - I take 200 mg a day - I'm 60 years old - the older we get, the less we have naturally of CoQ10.).  The government is at present studying this for the TREATMENT of cancer because cancer patients are observed to have significantly lowered levels of coQ10.  This element found in our bodies, has been observed to strengthen the immune system and lots of other positive things.  Synthetic CoEnzyme Q10 kills cancer cells in the petrie dish.  Ref:

National Cancer Institute - Coenzyme Q10

4. Avoid Tobacco use of any kind - did you know that every cigarette floods your body with 1 MILLION cancer causing free radicals?

5. Avoid chemical sweeteners - ALL OF THEM caused cancer in the rat studies

6. Avoid heavy foundation cosmetics and hair coloring - the few studies we have show a possible link between them and cancer. Remember anything you put on your skin does go "internal" because the skin is like a sponge!  Some medication are given through "skin delivery" (like patches etc)

7. Avoid sun screen. Sun Screen only blocks one type of cancer causing ray, but the rays it blocks are those which call in YOUR NATURAL defenses AGAINST skin cancer (getting tan).  So you are double exposing your skin to the most DANGEROUS type of skin cancer (rays NOT blocked by sun screen) by using sun block!  (Instead, cover up when you are going to be exposed to a lot of sun like on the beach etc.)

8. Get your Vitamin D daily - best way is getting about 15 - 20 minutes of sun a day (at least). Second best way - drink Vitamin D fortified milk (I like non fat milk)

9. Avoid alcoholic beverages - not only are these destructive of our cells in the body but they lower our immunity (despite what the liquor lobby would have us believe)

10. Make sure you get a couple of tablespoons of the "healthy fats" daily (Omega III and Omega VI fatty acids).  These are essential to our body's health and are often NOT found in the modern American diet.  You can obtain Omega VI fatty acids from peanut butter (yummy!) but must obtain Omega III fatty acids from fish.  If you don't wish to eat fish (due to the Mercury content), you can also obtain softgel "fish oil" capsules

11. Dieting in unhealthy manner can be risky. That is, it's most important to LIVE HEALTHY - make healthy food choices and exercise cardio at least 5 days a week. Starvation dieting and weight cycling can lower the metabolism and do other harm. Studies have suggested that lifestyle is generally more important to health than moderate obesity (BMI 26-30) and that a slightly higher BMI (26-30) can be protective to elderly people.

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