Cancer Prevention: 5 Tips to Lower Your Risk

Reduce Your Risk

Millions of Americans are diagnosed with cancer each year. While many risk factors are uncontrollable, there are still some risk factors that can be controlled by leading a healthier lifestyle. Here's how.

1. Get Regular Screenings

While getting regular screenings and testing cannot prevent cancer from developing, it can increase your chances of s for early detection and more treatment options. When cancers such as breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer are found during early stages, treatment is more likely to be effective.

2. Avoid Tobacco Use

Using tobacco products, in all forms, can increase your risk of developing cancer almost anywhere in your body. This is because cigarettes and other tobacco products have chemicals, called carcinogens, that cause cancer.

No matter how long you’ve been using tobacco products, quitting can significantly reduce your cancer risk.

3. Get Moving

Studies suggest that getting regular physical activity can lower your risk of developing several types of cancer. Leading a sedentary lifestyle with prolonged periods of watching television, sitting, and laying down is linked to various chronic health conditions, including cancer.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it is recommended that adults get about 30 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise daily.

4. Maintain a Healthy Diet

While no single food can completely eliminate your risk of developing cancer, eating a healthy diet rich in the necessary vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals can have anti-cancer effects.

According to the American Institute for Cancer Research, the following foods can help to reduce your risk of developing cancer:

• Apples

• Broccoli

• Garlic

• Leafy greens like kale and brussels sprouts

• Berries like strawberries and blueberries

• Beans and lentils

• Cherries

• Carrots

5. Protect Your Skin From the Sun

Skin cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer, with more than 96,000 people being diagnosed each year. Protecting your skin by using sunscreen is an easy and effective way to keep your body safe from the sun—reducing your risk of developing squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) by about 40 percent, and melanoma by about 50 percent.

Primary Care in Ridgecrest, California

At Ridgecrest Regional Hospital, whether your primary care provider is a family physician, internal medicine or women’s health doctor—our highly trained and experienced providers are dedicated to providing services to patients of all ages in Ridgecrest and surrounding areas. To learn more about our primary care services or schedule an appointment, visit our website or give us a call at (760) 446-3551 (Mon-Fri 8 AM-4:30 PM).