If there is one major disease that has plagued the world in its many forms, it is cancer. From our brains and breasts to our prostate and uterus, cancers can develop anywhere. Once they start, there is no guarantee that there spread can be stopped, because, despite improvements in medicine and research, there is still no cure for this disease.
Cancer is basically a disease where abnormal cells divide uncontrollably, and destroy the body tissues. These malignant cells can infiltrate and affect one organ, or the whole body, depending on its potence. A leading cause of death worldwide, countries like India are dealing with everything from breast cancer to lung cancer.
Early diagnosis can help get treatments, like mastectomy and chemotherapy, which can inhibit the growth of cancers. Full recovery, as you might already know, is the lot of very few.
So, while you can’t get rid of cancer easily once you do contract it, it is best to live a healthy life. This cannot guarantee that you won’t get cancer, since genetic mutation plays a huge role here. But you can minimise the risk of getting cancer if you adopt a healthy lifestyle.
Here are some lifestyle habits that can lead to cancer:
This habit is considered to be the first and foremost trigger of cancer. Tobacco is full of carcinogens. The moment you smoke, these carcinogens are released into your lung tissues. While your lung tissues can repair the damage initially, frequent or repeated exposure can cause carcinomas to form in the long term. These carcinomas can then turn into malignant tumours.
Regularly consuming foods that have a very high-sodium content can lead to stomach cancer. You might enjoy your fair dose of junk food, but you must know that they are chock full of salt and monosodium glutamate (MSG). While these ingredients add flavour to food, it also increases the chances of your system being flooded with excess sodium. Studies led by the Cancer Research UK have found salt-heavy diets to be a leading cause of stomach cancer and heart diseases.
Consuming Sugary Drinks
While glucose or sugar is essential for energy production in the body, an excess of it can lead to cancer. Cancer Research UK has found that cancer cells, which multiply very fast, need high glucose to grow. So, the presence of high sugar in the body can create a conducive atmosphere for their growth. Excessive consumption of sugary drinks–which taste brilliant, but have a very high glycemic index–can lead to the creation of such condition in your body.
Obesity, as you might already know, is a leading health issue Indians have to face. The presence of excessive fat in the body has been linked with a number of cancer types by the National Cancer Institute. The list includes everything from gastric and liver cancers to breast and pancreatic cancers. Not only are the bodies of obese people more prone to developing cancer, the high-fat content also makes diagnosis difficult in their case.
Excessive alcohol consumption has been linked to stomach and pancreatic cancers, but in the long run, it can also lead to liver cancer. Alcohol abuse can lead to scarring of the tissues of these organs. If these tissues don’t heal, or are exposed to further damage, this could lead to the formation of carcinomas in those areas. These can, in turn, become malignant.