I think a healthy diet and lifestyle is a good thing, but it doesn't prevent cancer...certain risk factors can possibly be lowered for certain types of cancers, such as possibly lung or throat cancer that might be directly related to smoking (they think) or certain skin cancers from radiation exposure, or having a known mole or intestinal polyp removed before it becomes cancerous, but the majority of cancers cannot be prevented...treated once detected, yes. Eating right, consuming miracle foods, and exercising doesn't provide immunity (prevention) against cancer...I think claims like that often reflect the fears and/or prejudices of those making the claims to the masses. It might lower certain risk factors but it does not prevent most cancers. Possibly lowering risk factors compared to actually preventing the disease is greatly different. It's understood that it might be comforting to think that something as scary as cancer can be attributed to avoidable lifestyle factors (which, btw, rings with false superiority, blames the victims, and can be hurtful to them) than it is to acknowledge that most cancer is known to date to be unpreventable and is largely a random disease without prejudice, that can strike any of us at any time and does not discriminate between lifestyles. The cancer toll is high across the board, including those that have avoided possible risk factors, been as healthy as they possibly could be, ate healthy foods their entire lives and were physically fit even to the point of triathlete, while those that lived a lifetime of "unhealthy lifestyles", drank to infinity, smoked 4 packs a day, practically bathed in chemicals, ate only meat and potatoes or nothing but junk food, get passed by by the cancer ship. My oncologist offices are full of people who feel hurt and betrayed by touted cancer prevention claims they lived by, that the very cancer that struck them would be prevented by lifestyle and diet and yet it was not. Believe we will prevent cancer from striking us by diet and lifestyle, nope...do all we can to be as healthy as possible and hope we're not one of the 1 in 3 that cancer strikes, yep.
This is just something that was on my heart this morning after receiving probably the 300th email regarding cancer preventing foods and herbs, not to mention the countless number of food and herb quack cancer cures. I'm sure most people mean well but just don't stop to think it through about how it can come across to so many of us with cancer. I know they don't want to lose us because we're so important to them and usually so completely loveable.

This is just something that was on my heart this morning after receiving probably the 300th email regarding cancer preventing foods and herbs, not to mention the countless number of food and herb quack cancer cures. I'm sure most people mean well but just don't stop to think it through about how it can come across to so many of us with cancer. I know they don't want to lose us because we're so important to them and usually so completely loveable.
