9 Healthy Habits That Thwart Cancer

The National Cancer Institute estimates that 1.5 million American men and women will be diagnosed with cancer in 2010, and 569,490 will die of the disease. All types of cancer usually take many years to develop, and healthy habits you practice now can significantly reduce your risk in the future. They include:

1. Eat more produce
Follow a diet high in vegetables, fruits, and whole grains, and limit high-fat red meats. Fruits and vegetables contain antioxidants which reduce cancer risk, while diets high in fat have been linked to colon, prostate, and breast cancer. Studies of vegetarians in England and Germany found they were 40 percent less likely to develop cancer than those who ate meat, and a Harvard study found that those who ate meat daily had three times the colon cancer risk when compared to those who rarely ate meat.

2. Avoid dry cleaning
Purchase clothing that doesn't need to be dry-cleaned since about 85 percent of dry cleaners use a chemical called perc (perchloroethylene) and other chemicals that have been shown to cause cancer in animals. U.S. studies found an increased risk of esophageal and bladder cancers in people working in dry cleaners.

3. Drink more water
A study published in The New England Journal of Medicine found that men who drank six 8-ounce glasses of water daily cut their risk of developing bladder cancer in half. Another study found that women who drank a lot of water reduced their risk of colon cancer by up to 45 percent.

4. Maintain a health weight
Cancers of the colon, breast, uterus, kidney, and esophagus are associated with obesity, and additional links have been found to cancers of the pancreas, bladder, and ovaries, according to the National Cancer Institute. A study published in the journal Cancer showed that obese men who develop prostate cancer are more likely to die from their disease than men of normal weight.

5. Get screened
Seek cancer-screening exams for breast, cervical, colon, and oral cancer. In addition to finding cancer early, screening exams for colorectal and cervical cancers also can remove abnormal cells that may turn into cancer and prevent cancer altogether. Experts say that simply examining the mouth for lesions could reduce mortality rates from oral cancer by 34 percent.

6. Limit alcohol
Men should limit their alcohol intake to just two drinks each day; women should indulge in no more than one drink daily. Excess alcohol increases the risk of cancers of the mouth, esophagus, larynx, pharynx, liver, and breast.

7. Move for 30 Minutes a Day
Experts recommend that people should exercise for at least 30 minutes each day. A Finnish study found that men who were the most physically active were the least likely to develop cancer, especially cancer of the gastrointestinal tract or lung. Those who exercised vigorously at least 30 minutes daily slashed their risk of dying from cancer by 50 percent. Simply walking each day has been shown to slash the risk of pancreatic cancer in half, and a study at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle found that walking reduces the risk of breast cancer in women.

8. Stop smoking
About 90 percent of lung cancer cases in men and 80 percent of cases in women are caused by smoking. According to the CDC, people who smoke raise their risk of developing lung cancer 10 to 20 times more than those who don't smoke. Smoking also causes cancer of the bladder, kidney, pancreas, cervix, stomach, larynx, mouth, and esophagus. It is the single largest preventable cause of death in the United States. Also, avoid being exposed to cigarette smoke, which contains more than 60 carcinogens.

9. Have a cup of tea
A wealth of scientific studies show that tea, especially green and white tea, inhibits several types of cancer including prostate, lung, colon, and bladder. A study from Taiwan found that the risk of lung cancer was five times lower in those people who drank just one cup of green tea a day.