Key to cancer prevention may be keeping your heart healthy

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If you want to avoid cancer, a new study suggests your heart is a prime place to start.

New research finds that people who follow the American Heart Association's "Life's Simple 7" steps to lower their risk for heart disease get an added bonus of protection against cancer. The more steps you follow, the better the risk reduction, according to the study.

"This can help health professionals provide a clear, consistent message about the most important things people can do to protect their health and lower their overall risk for chronic diseases," study author Dr. Laura J. Rasmussen-Torvik, an assistant professor at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, urged doctors in a statement.

Just what are the "Simple 7" tips to stave off heart disease?

For the new study, published March 18 in the AHA's journal Circulation, researchers tracked more than 13,000 white and black Americans enrolled in a long-running study of atherosclerosis risk that kicked off in 1987. Participants were interviewed at the study's start to gauge their health habits, and about 20 years later, researchers looked at cancer registries and hospitals to determine that more than 2,800 of the participants had developed cancer. Lung, colon, rectum, prostate and breast cancers were most common.

The researchers found that those who followed six or seven of the AHA's tips reduced their risk for cancer by 51 percent, compared to participants who followed zero of the health tips. Meeting four factors led to a 33 percent risk reduction, but even following one or two was tied to a 21 percent drop in cancer risk.

When the researchers removed smoking from their analysis, which is often flagged as a major risk factor for cancer or heart disease, the researchers found participants who followed five or six of the remaining health tips had a 25 percent lower risk of having cancer compared to those who followed none.

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"Quitting smoking is very important, but there are other factors you need to be aware of if you want to live a healthy life," Rasmussen-Torvik said.

Dr. David Katz, director of the Yale University Prevention Research Center, told HealthDay that past studies have suggested eating one way to avoid heart disease, another to avoid diabetes and another to prevent cancer.

"This never made sense," said Katz, who was not involved in the research. "Take good care of your body by exercising it, feeding it well and sparing it exposures to such toxins as tobacco, and it is far more likely to take good care of you, sparing you heart disease and cancer, not to mention other chronic diseases."

[JerseySue]

And TAKE ASPIRIN. Why do these scientists never appear to talk to each other or review other research? Another thing that heart-healthy conscious people do is TAKE ASPIRIN -- a habit shown increasingly beneficial to preventing CANCER because it reduces inflammation. Sheesh, we've been connecting the dots for twenty years now. Someday they'll admit that the big switch to Tylenol back in the 1980s did more harm than good.

[wholefed1]

The ideal spot for "Instead of Flowers" is on the night stand next to the patient in the recovery ward or leaving the doctors office with bad news.

It is that precise moment in life, when lightning has struck, that you need a plan.

Since my heart disease diagnosis in 2011 and subsequent quadruple bypass surgery at the age of 40, I have learned a few things!

I share my experience not in an attempt to persuade. I am not a preacher. I am not a leader. I share only to shed light on these defining moments in a lifetime and the power that exists in harnessing them.

My goal is not to write another nutrition book filled with recipes or pictures of my favorite foods. I have not written an "I command you to obey" type of book either. I am of the personality; if you tell me to do something I will probably do the opposite.

I have come across a course of action, through nutrition, that has extraordinary benefits. But the food is a small part of the overall plan. Simply, having a plan provides extraodinary benefits. My overwhelming motivation is to provide you with the knowledge that a course of action is available when you find yourself in tough circumstances.


I wish someone had given me this book sooner!


In 2011, I could not have imagined my life today. At the age of 40, I was diagnosed with heart disease; four major blockages that if left alone would have ended my life quickly.

I had no plan and it ended in a hospital. I do not want to go back.


I had my chest sawed open. It was singularly the most influential event in my life and in hindsight I would not change a thing. I am glad it happened.

The lightning bolt moments are as rare as a strike of electricity to the head. They either kill you or offer you the opportunity to walk away with a second chance. It is precisely these moments that need to be deconstructed because they happen in an instant. These moments exist a lifetime as either regret or epiphanies.

The reality is, we have no way of knowing how we will exit this world. For some of us, we will lead long full lives and gently succumb in our sleep at a ripe old age. For others it will be a tragic exit, leaving loved ones to question how it could have happened.

However, the majority of us will face the challenge of fighting for our years and it comes down to a simple question.

Do you want to spend your last years in a gradual state of decline both mentally and physically? Or do you want to challenge the odds and finish up on your feet?

Your physical body has very simple needs. It is a fact of biology. Run your body on the core ingredients it needs, run it clean. Don't let your mind dictate what the body wants. A foundation built on this simple approach will drastically move the odds of avoiding disease in your favor.


"This guy's walking down the street when he falls in a hole.

The walls are so steep he can't get out. A doctor passes by and the guy shouts up, 'Hey you. Can you help me out?' The doctor writes a prescription, throws it down in the hole and moves on.

Then a priest comes along and the guy shouts up, 'Father, I'm down in this hole can you help me out?' The priest writes out a prayer, throws it down in the hole and moves on
.
Then a friend walks by, 'Hey, Joe, it's me can you help me out?' And the friend jumps in the hole. Our guy says, 'Are you stupid? Now we're both down here.'

The friend says, 'Yeah, but I've been down here before, I know the way out." *


Let me help you out of the hole.

Ian Welch
WholeFed.org

[Nate650]

"A diet low in saturated and trans fats, cholesterol, sodium and added sugars..."

Trans fats and refined sugars you definitely want to avoid, but saturated fat and cholesterol from quality sources should not be on the avoid list. Sadly the notion that saturated fat and cholesterol are bad for health is still ingrained in the minds of so many people to this day.

Salt is another one that is unjustifiably singled out. There is really no solid evidence to suggest that excess salt intake leads to health problems. Granted, certain types of salt are healthier than others. For example, Celtic wet sea salt retains trace vitamins and minerals.

The focus should be more on the countless industrial crap in processed food these days like high fructose corn syrup, refined GMO vegetable oils, and artificial preservatives, flavors, and colors.