The Top 9 Ways to Help Prevent Cancer
Half of all cancer deaths can be prevented by getting educated and making lifestyle changes to lead a healthier life. By taking a stand for your own health, you’re helping to protect yourself and decrease the number of preventable cancer deaths worldwide.
Here are some prevention suggestions!
Be proactive
When you know your family history, you can plan ahead. Many cancers like breast, colorectal and ovarian can be hereditary. Ask your doctor about genetic counseling, and talk to your family! Relatives are the best link to your past, and doctors are a great resource for a healthy future.
Eat your greens
Vegetables are kind of like anti-cancer super heroes. Just like your mama told you, green veggies contain nutrients and antioxidants that help prevent those villainous cancer cells from forming.
Tell your friends to quit… and help them do it
Lung cancer is no joke, and cigarette smoking causes more than 440,000 deaths annually in the U.S. (including deaths from secondhand smoke). Quitting smoking is hard. The next time you see a friend light up, let them know how much you care by sharing this fact, and offer to help however you can.
Get Moving!
Your couch potato syndrome could be hurting you more than you think. Obesity and physical inactivity may account for 25 to 30 percent of several major cancers including colon, breast (postmenopausal), endometrial, kidney, and esophageal.
Be sunscreen savvy
You know the smell makes you think of summer, so why not indulge year-round? Unprotected sun exposure can cause melanoma – the #1 cancer in men and women ages 25 to 29. Protect your head with hats and your skin with an SPF of 15 or more. And don’t even think about hitting up that tanning salon. The UVA radiation from tanning beds is three times as harmful as the sun. Just ask yourself – is it worth it?
Help spread the word
Donations are key to funding vital cancer research and education, but not everyone has the cash flow, you know? You can help by spreading the word to your friends and family. Whether you share this page or share your story, it brings us all one step closer to finding a cure.
Touch yourself
Ladies and gentlemen, know your body, and monitor it often for bumps, lumps, or changes. Monthly self-exams of breasts, testicles, and skin are a healthy habit to get into, and are perfect when paired with your annual check up. Early detection is key: Doctors believe that catching breast cancer early on could save thousands of lives each year. Testicular cancer is the most common form of cancer in men between the ages of 15 and 34.
Get educated
Every minute, we lose someone we love to cancer. Knowledge is power, but ignorance is definitely not bliss. Figure out the small lifestyle changes you can make every day to build up your armor against cancer. Subscribe to scientific and advocacy newsletters (like the SU2C newsletter), talk to cancer survivors, and be your own advocate.
Donate
We are always happy to take your money and invest it in promising cancer research. Got the big bucks? Use your plastic to donate now at SU2C.org. Or if your budget is a little tight right now, you can text STAND to 40202 to automatically give $10 to Stand Up To Cancer (don’t forget to confirm). Everybody’s doing it.
