We all know that leading a healthy life style decreases our chances of developing cancer. But there are still risk factors we are not controlling properly.
Everyone likes to tell themselves a little white lie once in a while: “just one more chocolate bar won’t hurt, I’ll start my diet tomorrow” or “smoking only once a week will not give me lung cancer”.
The problem is that we are patting ourselves on the back for “only smoking once a week”, while we are actually not really doing ourselves a favor. Limiting risky behavior does not have as great an impact as you may think! This does not suggest you might as well smoke a pack a day, but it does suggest you should quit altogether!
There are life changing risk factors you are in control of, but you need to take an honest look at yourself and see how your life style measures up. Be honest with yourself: eating healthy is great, but combined with excessive alcohol consumption it will not do your health any good!
Common risk factors for cancer are a body mass index that is too high (being overweight or obese), the occasional (or frequent) cigarette, too little exercise, excessive alcohol intake and bad food choices.
Leaving positive action (the gym) for tomorrow and indulging “one last time” today can really add up. Gain a few pounds a year, thinking you will loose them over the summer, also adds up! Only 39% of obese individuals rate themselves as obese, according to a recent survey of people living in New York.
At some point you will have a sizable health problem and not even remember how you got to that point! Being careful and conscious about your health is a daily task, don’t put it off until tomorrow! Because with that philosophy, “tomorrow” may never happen!