There are more than 100 types of cancer in the world affecting every group of people from infants to senior citizens. According to studies, 39.5% of men and women will be diagnosed with cancer at some point and tens of thousands of children will receive a cancer diagnosis. Cancer is among the leading causes of death worldwide. Let’s take a look at what is contributing to such high occurrences of cancer and how we can prevent it.
What is Cancer? What Causes Cancer?
Cancer is a systemic disease affecting your entire immune system. A cancer cell is an abnormal cell. These cancer cells can grow at extreme rates creating an overgrowth of abnormal cells. In a healthy body with a strong immune system, our body is able to get rid of these abnormal cells. In a body with a weakened immune system, the body cannot hold off the abnormal cells which create an overgrowth. These cells attack normal healthy cells.
So cancer is not a problem with a specific organ, it is an issue with your entire immune system. But there may be an organ in your body that is being impacted most and this is what creates cancers in specific areas of the body such as the breast, colon, pancreas, liver, brain, etc. Cancer in these areas are overgrown, the organ can’t heal, and the abnormal cells won’t die because your immune system is neither able to keep the cells at bay nor kill them off. When these abnormal cells don’t die, the cells can grow out of control and impede blood flow and organ function.
Who is Most Likely to Get Cancer?
- Obesity: Excess weight is associated with an increased risk of 13 common types of cancer including pancreatic, ovarian, renal, endometrial, colorectal, breast, gallbladder, and thyroid cancers. Obesity also increases the risk of mortality in cancer patients and survivors
- Alcohol
- Smoking
- Immunosuppressant drugs
- Hormone imbalances
- Over inflammation
- Viruses
- Bacteria
- Chemical Exposure
With so many different types of cancer affecting different organs and systems within our bodies, symptoms vary widely. The most common symptoms of cancer include pain, unintentional weight loss, fatigue, fever, bleeding, sores, changes in hair or skin, and anemia. These symptoms alone could mean anything, so in any case, blood work is important to get to the root of your issue and begin the healing process.
To know exactly where you stand, consult with a doctor for blood work detailing your platelets. Platelets are the inflammation in your blood and it is best when below 150. You’ll also want to check for lactate dehydrogenase which is the measure of your organ function and Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate (ESR) to measure how your blood is clumping. It may also be important to check for tumor markers and hormone levels.
Lower Cancer Risk with 6 Healthy Lifestyle Changes
Once blood work is done and a cancer diagnosis is determined, most cancer patients undergo drug therapies such as radiation, chemotherapy, and hormone therapies to help their bodies kill off the overgrowth of cancer cells. They may also be treated with surgery to remove cancer or tumors from the affected area. Stem cell or bone marrow transplants are also a common treatment.
These treatments have been successful and necessary for some but, what they lack is dealing with the actual issue which is a weak immune system. Removing cancer from the patient’s body will help them go into remission but it does not prevent cancer from coming back. A strengthened immune system is what will keep the cancerous cells at bay and defeated.
Here’s what you can do to improve your blood work and bolster your immune system against attacks.
1. Advanced Gut Reset
Gut health is imperative to a strong immune system. This is because our gut and our immune system work closely together. Our immune system assists the gut in attacking bad bacteria. Our gut supplies the good bacteria that our immune systems need to provide a strong response to foreign cells, toxins, and substances. So we can’t forget about our gut health in the grand scheme of strong immunity.
What we consume truly improves or destroys our gut health. Everything from stress, obesity, drugs and medications, lifestyle habits in regards to food and exercise, and disease determines the health of our gut and therefore, our immune health. Sometimes, the best thing to do is start over, reset and repair the gut so that it can heal and function properly. The Livingood Daily Lifestyle has a 21-day, step-by-step program that will take you through resetting your gut, removing the inflammation-causing foods, and slowly reintroducing foods.
2. Manage Your Stress
Effects of stress on your immune system can be detrimental. Studies show that chronic stress has a negative effect on cancer growth, cancer risk, the effectiveness of cancer treatment, and mortality from cancer. Stress can also contribute to obesity and inflammation in your body.
There are many ways to manage stress, depression, and anxiety. It starts with what you are consuming, what you are watching, eating, and drinking. Improving your lifestyle habits can contribute to better mental health. Exercise and learning how to breathe can also be stress-reducing. The Lifestyle offers ways to manage your stress with a library of 10-minute workouts, breathing exercises, and health guides to help you build a foundation for health.
3. Detox from Toxins and Chemicals
An overload of chemicals and toxins in your bloodstream can also increase your risk of cancer. Removing toxins from your body and bloodstream will restore blood flow and re-energize your cells. The Livingood Daily Detox is a two-part detoxing supplement that eliminates toxins intracellularly and extracellularly without causing any digestive stress. Combine the Livingood Daily Detox with the Livingood Daily Microbe Cleanse and an anti-inflammatory diet during a gut reset for best results.
4. Avoid Sugar
Cancerous cells feed on sugar, so it must be avoided. Research shows that consuming large amounts of sugar may increase the risk of cancer. However, many people are unaware of the number of sugars in their everyday foods, especially those in packaged and processed foods. These types of foods are loaded with sugars that are sometimes unrecognizable because they are listed by different names. The best way to avoid overconsuming sugar is to avoid packaged and processed foods altogether. There are plenty of quick and simple ways to make delicious and satisfying meals. Check out recipes on the blog and the Make Food Simple book for low sugar and low inflammation meals, desserts, and snacks!
5. Increase Your Vitamin D Levels
Research shows that low exposure to sunlight and vitamin D deficiency is associated with an increased risk of many diseases including cancer. Studies also show that higher levels of Vitamin D have an antitumor effect. Livingood Daily Vitamin D complex offers a convenient way to get high levels of vitamin D that absorb into your bloodstream properly.
6. Exercise During Cancer
Of course, exercise is good and necessary at any stage of life, but studies show that exercise can prevent any cancer risks and reduce tumor size in patients with certain types of cancers. With high-intensity exercise, we are able to improve cardiac function, oxygen, and blood flow which can help our immune response to foreign attacks. In a 12-week study of breast cancer patients and survivors, strength training was shown to improve the side effects of breast cancer and breast cancer treatment and reduce mortality risk by 33% in survivors! Your exercise routine can be as simple as 10 minutes per day. Check out these 10-minute, high-intensity, strength training exercises and find more in the Livingood Daily Lifestyle!
All in all, a cancer diagnosis can be a stressful event for the patient and their entire family. Drug therapies and surgeries can kill cancerous cells but also present more symptoms and issues. What’s worse is they don’t address what is actually causing cancer. Now that you know how to address the real issue, it’s just a matter of implementing these natural remedies into your lifestyle.
Sources
Gut Health and Cancer: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41416-021-01467-x
Vitamin D and Cancer: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5938036/
Exercise and Cancer: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5406418/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31689771/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29083464/
Sugar and Cancer: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30445141/
Stress and Cancer: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31814865/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18493231/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3326655/
