Use sparkling water instead of sugary sodas
Fish instead of processed meat… Non-alcoholic cocktails instead of alcohol
When eating whole grains rich in dietary fiber, the risk of colon cancer decreases by 17%.
A research report found that the incidence of colon cancer is increasing among young people. What can we do to reduce this risk? There are many reasons why we develop cancer that are beyond our control, including genetics, environment, and childhood exposures. But there are also some areas where our decisions can have a big impact.
Trisha Pasricha, a lecturer at Harvard Medical School and the author of the ‘Ask the Doctor’ column for the Washington Post, recommends that many patients start by changing their diet. A Mediterranean diet rich in legumes, nuts, fruits, and vegetables can reduce the risk of colon cancer by about 18%. However, it is not easy to make a sudden change in diet because many people are accustomed to a Western diet that is low in fiber and consists mainly of highly processed foods.
Pasricha encourages patients to comfortably create new habits and lifestyles through small, healthy changes. I recommend trying one change at a time, one change per month.
First, try sparkling water instead of sugar-sweetened beverages. Many popular sparkling water brands do not contain sugar. Drinking one sugar-sweetened beverage per day during adolescence is linked to early-onset colon cancer, according to an analysis from the 2021 Nurses’ Health Study II, a landmark study that tracked the lifestyle habits and other medical conditions of nearly 100,000 U.S. nurses over several decades. It was found to be associated with a 32% increase in cancer risk.
Try fish instead of processed or red meat. It’s a good idea to make an easy-to-prepare salmon dish instead of hot dogs or hamburgers on weekday evenings. In particular, it is best to avoid smoked meats or processed meats (sausages, bacon, deli meats such as bologna) that have been processed with nitrates or nitrites. A study of more than 500,000 European adults found that consuming 100 to 200 grams of fatty or lean fish per week reduced the risk of colorectal cancer by 7%.
Try whole grains instead of refined grains. We eat grains like rice and bread in our meals several times a week. Refined grains, such as white rice or bread made from white flour, are low in fiber and other minerals. The high dietary fiber found in whole grains such as brown rice, quinoa, and farro may reduce the risk of colon cancer. For example, one meta-analysis found that eating three servings of whole grains per day was associated with a 17% reduced risk of colon cancer.
Instead of alcoholic cocktails, try non-alcoholic cocktails. There is no amount of alcohol that does not increase the risk of cancer. So if your goal is to reduce your cancer risk, Pasricha recommends not just reducing your alcohol consumption, but cutting it out completely. Fortunately, unlike in the past, non-alcoholic drinks are becoming more and more popular. If you want to unwind in a fun and leisurely way, there are endless choices of non-alcoholic beverages.
▲Even a small amount of alcohol is not safe
Pasricha’s patients often find it difficult to follow advice to reduce their alcohol intake. This is because we have created a culture that normalizes and sometimes glorifies light or moderate drinking. In particular, after the pandemic, perceptions of ‘normal’ drinking amounts changed in the wrong direction, and as a result, adverse health effects continued to emerge. Now is the time to reset this framework.
But we are fighting the age-old belief that wine is “good for you.” Past studies have suggested that moderate alcohol consumption may have a small protective effect against cardiovascular disease, but a large 2023 meta-analysis disproves this idea. And no study has shown that these people have a reduced risk of cancer. Because drinking less than one standard drink a day increases the risk of cancer, World Health Organization (WHO) researchers now recommend that there is no ‘safe amount of alcohol’.
▲Correlation between colon cancer and obesity
Excess body fat causes a chronic inflammatory state in the body, increasing the risk of colon cancer. Body mass index (BMI) is not a perfect measure, but a large study published in the journal Medical Science in 2022 found that people with a BMI of 30 or more at age 20 had a 2.5 times the risk of early-onset colorectal cancer compared to people with a BMI of less than 25. It was high.
If obesity is a concern for you, especially if it runs in your family, it’s worth discussing all your options with your doctor. Recent studies have shown that GLP-1 agonists are effective in reducing the risk of several obesity-related cancers, including colon cancer, and that bariatric surgery also reduces the risk of obesity-related cancer and death by 32% in obese adults.
Of particular note, a study of more than 1 million patients published last year in JAMA Oncology found that GLP-1 agonists reduced the risk of colorectal cancer in patients with type 2 diabetes, regardless of whether they were obese. Although we are continuing to study the different health effects of GLP-1 agonists, these drugs appear to improve colon cancer risk through a variety of mechanisms, independent of simple weight loss.
▲What patients need to know
The four main signs and symptoms of early-onset colorectal cancer diagnosed before age 50 are rectal bleeding, iron deficiency anemia, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. These symptoms can be caused by many different causes and are not necessarily cause for concern, but it is important to contact your doctor quickly if you experience these symptoms. People who had three or more of these symptoms were more than six times more likely to be diagnosed with early-onset colon cancer, according to a 2023 study published in the National Journal of Cancer Research. About half of these people experienced their first signs or symptoms within three months of diagnosis.
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