Among the leading causes of death, cancer is definitely the champion. In 2017, around 1.7 million people in the US only are expected to get cancer. Also, out of the existing cancer patients, around 0.6 million will likely pass away. These statistics get worse as we plunge deeper into the subject of how deadly cancer is, but one good fact remains. It’s preventable. It’s also treatable, just with a lower success rate.

The best way to fight cancer is, well, to not get cancer. This is why everyone needs to know whether they are doing something wrong and thus increasing their risk. Research also shows that most cancer types are stealthy, and might be found out too late without regular check-ups. We may think we are in control, but cancer is constantly evolving as a disease. Though it doesn’t sound likely that abnormal tissue growth can evolve, right?

Well, it’s more like a race really. As we find new ways to fight our own early decomposition, our bodies come up with other means of self-destruction. It’s highly likely that cancer will forever remain the number one destructive disease, and the biggest cause of death worldwide. The problem with finding a cure for cancer is that no chemical is smart or potent enough. Basically, we need a medicine that can recognize abnormal cells and destroy them, while leaving the healthy ones intact.

Until science blesses us with the miracle we all anxiously await, it’s up to us to heal ourselves. As mentioned, the best way to do that is to fight cancer early. Here are fifteen of the best ways to do that.

1. Quit Smoking

You’ve probably heard this a million times over, and you probably will again, but that’s because it’s true. Smoking is the number one cause of cancer, both active and passive. Aside from the plainly obvious chance of lung cancer, those exposed to cigarette smoke bear another risk. That one risk, in fact, relates to the entirety of the human body. Numerous forms of cancer can come from inhaling smoke, including esophagus, larynx, mouth, throat, kidney, bladder, liver, pancreas, stomach, cervix, colon and rectum cancer. There’s also a form of leukemia, called acute myeloid leukemia, which smoking can cause as well.

The reason for this frightening statistic is that tobacco smoke contains up to at least 69 carcinogens. In other words, substances that can in one way or another damage the cells and change their structure. The saying that every cigarette you smoke takes 5 minutes of your life away, isn’t really exaggerated. Even if cancer doesn’t come at all, smoking damages the body in various other ways. This also contributes to the birth of cancer itself, as it is more likely to affect faulty organs. By ‘faulty’, we mean unstable, vulnerable and unprotected by the immune system.

There’s only so much damage the human body can take and cure on its own. Smoking causes the veins and arteries to clog, which means less blood flow. Thus, most organs and muscles don’t get their proper oxygen supply, which causes deterioration. Ultimately, smoking in itself may not cause anything at all, but it will most definitely contribute to other illnesses.

2. Drop The Bottle

Do you ever wonder where all the last night’s poison goes when you’re hungover? Sure, it was in your body for a while and then it went out through your bladder, but how? What happened to the actual ethanol? Did your blood just absorb and digest it? No, all of it actually went through one single organ – your liver. The liver is, as its name suggests, what allows you to survive all the popular junky substances. Alcoholics tend to neglect and abuse its function, which eventually sends them to a hospital. More often than not, long-term alcoholics don’t get to re-visit the ER.

What happens is their liver simply gives up on filtering all the horrible poisons, because it is wounded and exhausted. Once a human being reaches this stage of constant intoxication, health becomes a distant thought. A damaged liver is very difficult to repair, and after it, all the other organs as well. With a malfunctioning poison filter, all your organs begin taking much more damage than usual, which weakens them. Cancer is then likely to kick in, for an undefended body is much more prone to cell overgrowth.

Also worth mentioning is the fact that alcohol dumb down your muscles and organs. When you’re intoxicated, your blood is slower than usual, due to the present toxin. Again, this creates a similar effect to that of smoking, and the organs experience malnourished. This means that most of your cells are then undefended, which is exactly when cancerous mutations happen. And yeah, in case you were wondering, those that combine smoking and drinking bear the greatest cancer risk.

3. Combat Obesity

Obesity is most frequently related to diabetes, but that’s just one of the numerous risks. Cancer itself does not come from obesity but favors its presence significantly. Let’s start by understanding that obesity comes from a very unhealthy lifestyle. That in itself, even without the excess weight, tends to create a foundation for cancer. The damage your body takes from all the artificial flavoring and coloring can actually take the blame for a lot of diseases.

As for obesity itself, and the way it induces potentially terminal malfunctions in the system, it’s rather simple. The human body has various kinds of tissue, depending on its location and function. Adipose tissue is the number one victim of obesity because it’s under constant pressure. You can think of it as the lining of our fat container. As such, it undergoes significant transformations during obesity. It gets stretched and becomes thinner, at which point it begins to degenerate. The stretching of adipose tissue is mostly not a problem on its own, but complications can happen.

In that case, the cells that suffered immense pressure trauma begin to change form, which results in overgrowth. Endometrial, pancreatic, kidney, colorectal, ovarian and advanced prostate cancers can also occur. We should also mention that obese bodies are generally slower when it comes to most functions. The same goes for immune system responses and its effectiveness. The glans that we use to combat cancer on our own suffer deficiencies, which bolster and hasten cancer progression. Ultimately, there’s also obesity-induced depression, which additionally impairs the functionality of the system.

4. Exercise Regularly

Although no evidence for this is needed, research shows that physical activity reduces various health risks. Those that don’t favor too much exercise shouldn’t be worried, as this refers to 30 minutes per day. That’s right, only a half an hour of continuous exercise is enough to maintain a healthy structure. Of course, there’s a lot of calorie-filled junk that we should keep away from, which is still easy. For those that understand the biological safety that comes with this sacrifice, it’s an easy decision. There’s no need to find a trainer either, nor even have a gym membership. Thirty minutes of just working out in your room are good enough.

Studies confirm something that the majority has doubts about – inactive healthy living is still bad. In other words, you can be a non-smoker, non-drinker and eat completely healthy, but you still need to exercise. It’s simply not enough for your body to just digest healthy ingredients and remain inactive. Our muscles are meant to work, to get fired up and to increase our blood flow. When this doesn’t occur for a while, we begin to enter atrophy. Of course, we don’t mean complete muscle immobility, but it’s mild and more common form.

Office workers, for example, spend most of their time just sitting down. Walking to the elevator and from there to the parking lot simply won’t cut it. Workers with stationary job positions need to compensate their free time to stay healthy. The problem is that most don’t actually care about this issue until a carcinoma is found. Simply put, when your body doesn’t use its energy, it begins to hate you.

5. Apply Sunscreen

Some types of skin are less susceptible to the impact of sunlight. Individuals that possess it often sunbathe unprotected, because they’re accustomed to the scorch. As much as this habit may not be harmful at first glance, it may be in the long run. People that don’t apply sunscreen will maybe get tanned faster, but at what cost? At some point, the sun can actually kill you, and bronzier skin isn’t worth that risk. Think of it this way, you’re facing the same rays that are killing off the poles of your planet. As we keep on doing irreparable damage to our ozone layer, this is only going to get worse. Eventually, every single person on earth will have to apply sunscreen.

In case you’re wondering why, the answer is melanoma, the deadliest skin cancer. Although the sun’s harmful UV rays can radiate all kinds of diseases onto us, melanoma is the greatest threat. Don’t forget, though, that morning sunlight is super beneficial for its vitamin D supply. However, if you plan on going somewhere on a summer’s midday, bring some protection. People who are constantly exposed to these rays, such as construction and oil rig workers, often do get melanoma.

You don’t always have to squeeze a tube, though. There are other ways to shield yourself from the rays, such as hats and sunglasses. We all have our daily duties, but we can remove the risk of fulfilling them. Melanoma can strike at literally any moment, and once it does, it’s usually too late. Protecting yourself from the sun should be your number one priority whenever going outside between 11 AM and 6 PM.

6. Get Checked Regularly

While cancer is one of the most difficult diseases out there, 99% of its types are treatable early on. If the day comes when every human on Earth will have a cancer detector present 24/7, barely anyone will die of it. Stage one of almost any cancer requires fairly simple treatment. The problem with the disease occurs in stages two and three when it grows and spreads beyond control. Before that, though, all it takes to get rid of it is to undergo a minor medical procedure. It may seem absurd to compare early cancer to a cold, but treating either is almost equally simple.

The problem with this scenario is that most people don’t give cancer too much thought. When further complications ensue, it’s almost always just too late. That’s why regular health checks are a must, regardless of age and sex. However, we should mention that those above 45 are at greater risk, so checks are somewhat obligatory in that case. Individuals that have frequent cancer screenings still don’t have full immunity, though. Sometimes carcinoma can be just too stealthy for even the most modern medical technology. Even still, those cases are not as common, and most types are prone to early detection.

When it comes to the slight differences between sexes in terms of cancer frequency, there are a few. Women, for example, should get a mammogram (breast health check) every year in order to prevent breast cancer – the most common female carcinoma. Men, on the other hand, need to monitor their prostate and testes. After the age of 45, all men and women should make sure to scan for colon cancer once a year.

7. Eat Healthy

We all love a tasty meal, and most of the time it’s bound to contain certain unhealthy additives. That’s quite fine if we’re already undergoing aforementioned steps. Another one of those is healthy dieting. To put it as simply as possible, make sure that the things you’re digesting have a lot of “good” and very little “bad”. A lot of foods that can be beneficial will also have a negative effect of some sort. For example, honey is an incredible anti-cancerous food, but it is rich in sugar and calories. A lot of honey is good for you, but it can also lead to weight gain.

Then again, foods such as leafy green vegetables are just good. You can never go wrong with eating a whole batch of spinach, kale and romaine, multiple times per week. Sure, there’s such a thing as vitamin deficiency, and if you eat only these, you won’t get other vitamins. However, they contain so many that there are very little that you wouldn’t ingest. Still, this is just an extreme example. A healthy diet contains all vitamin sources in moderation. The best thing – you don’t need to be a nutritionist, nor hire one. The internet is there for all your concerns, and there is lots of information about all kinds of foods.

The best advice here is to design your own diet, according to your tastes and needs. This won’t give you full immunity, again, but it will definitely protect you to a high extent. A healthy body is just highly unlikely to suffer a terminal illness such as cancer. Your cells will be full of vitamins, their operations boosted to the maximum, and their proper function ensured.

8. Don’t Binge On Antibiotics

As the pharmaceutical industry keeps inventing new medicines for this and that, we tend to get lost in the prescriptions. It’s alright to cure your minor illness with a pill, but not to resort to it whenever something’s wrong. Most urban livers, though, are oblivious to this fact. Nowadays, it’s almost common to self-diagnose and self-remedy minor conditions. The horrible truth behind it, however, is that we more often than not poison ourselves. Everyone that does this should realize that doctors went to college for a reason. Sure, you may be able to establish what’s wrong with you, but leave the treatment to the professional.

This is very important to consider because constant use of antibiotics can kill in various ways. First of all, it lowers the general immunity of the entire body. Whenever you take an antibiotic, your immune system undergoes an artificial and unnatural change. If this just goes on for some time, it eventually stops responding to the disease. Of course, the immune system will always somewhat function, but that’s just not enough. People need to understand that antibiotics are meant only for bacterial infections. You can’t cure basic influenza with a hardened mixture of who-knows-what.

Antibiotics also undergo digestion, and the substances most of them contain tend to kill benign bacteria. Without this invaluable help, the stomach stops digesting various nutrients that help us combat cancer. As a result, various studies conclude that antibiotic over-consumption can be extremely malignant, and sometimes lethal. If cancer risk isn’t enough, there’s also the fact that they just stop functioning at some point. Meaning, when you need your antibiotic to actually save your life, it might not do that because your body no longer responds to it accordingly.

9. Get Vaccinated

First of all, vaccines do not cause autism. Now that we have that out of the way, they are super important as well. When we are born, our systems basically arrive empty into the world. The disease can come in numerous ways, and it helps to have some antibodies beforehand. Vaccines give us precisely this – a small dose of the illness, transformed into immunity against it.

Before we go into more detail, know that every single disease contributes to cancer. Vaccines do the wonder of preventing a vast number of deadly changes to our bodies. As such, they are potentially the biggest lifesavers on the planet. If not for them, we’d still be dying of diseases that disappeared years ago.

Now what we actually mean when we correlate vaccines to cancer prevention is the immunity to only a few diseases. Human papillomavirus (HPV) and hepatitis B are two horrible illnesses that vaccines can prevent. Both of them are sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), and thus fully wide-spread. The damage that these diseases do to the body is especially beneficial for any carcinoma development.

Hepatitis B directly targets the liver and eventually impairs its functioning. We’ve already mentioned how important the liver is, and in this case, we mean liver cancer in particular. Your entire body becomes much more susceptible to all kinds of irregularities, but your liver is definitely the greatest victim. Human papillomavirus does similar damage but in a different way. Due to the specificity of body locations that it affects, it is directly related to vaginal, penile, anal and oropharyngeal cancer. With the mentioned facts in mind, further explanations of vaccine contributions are completely unnecessary.

10. Feel Good

Various psychological tests proved over and over that cancer can appear due to our state of mind. This means that, at the end of the day, even the most extreme physical health just isn’t sufficient. Certain psychologists believe that cancer is the body’s own self-destruction mechanism. The fact that cancer and other terminal illnesses were successfully treated with placebo is also present. People who often experience stress and have low self-esteem or depression bear a high cancer risk. Both the physical and mental factor is part of this statistic.

Persistent stress means that the nervous system is suffering constant damage, which thus reduces overall health. On the other hand, various minor mental conditions imply that the brain doesn’t function properly. For example, people with depression mostly have insomnia as well.

This is because their brain doesn’t secrete enough serotonin and melatonin – the sleep and happiness hormones. While a hormone deficiency in itself won’t cause you cancer, it will impair other parts of your body. When we don’t get enough sleep, our heart suffers damage. This may further cause complications such as blood clots, and that poses a serious health risk. Cancer can then develop the complications that follow.

Above is just one example of how mental issues can cause cancer, but rest assured there are many others. Disease will always follow disease, so health needs to be ubiquitous in order to ensure a long life. In conclusion, a healthy mind and a healthy body are the biggest possible shield against cancer.

11. Calcium intake is important

We all know the basics of why calcium is important in our diets as we need it to keep our bones and teeth strong. Strong bones are vital in supporting our skeletal structures. Calcium is also vital in your cells’ ability to signal, it assists in our blood clotting, gives our muscles the ability to contract and assists with all our nerve functions.

There is not 100% clarity of the exact mechanics by which calcium helps reduce the risk of colorectal cancer (cancer of the colon), but research has shown on a biochemical level, calcium allows our bile acids to bind and for fatty acids in our gut to form insoluble connectors known as calcium soaps. These “soaps” help prevent cell damage in the lining of our colons and stimulates cell production which repairs any damage found in the gut.

Calcium also directly reduces cell proliferation in our colon lining assisting in any damage being done to our colons and preventing “bad” cell growth. The average person under fifty needs about 1000mg of calcium a day, but if you are over fifty you need to increase that to 1200 mg per day.

Many follow a diet of no dairy (one of the highest calcium-rich foods) and may have to use supplements to get their required calcium. If you fall into this category – don’t buy the cheapest one on the shelf – take a look at the actual amount of calcium contained in each pill and see how many you may need to take in a day to keep your calcium level above the prescribed daily dose. Calcium-rich foods are also; Bok Choy, broccoli, kale, sardines or watercress.

12. Get your “caffeine” fix

That hot dark and magical beverage that we all love so much can actually help you. Well, it’s been proven that is you drink at least 5 cups a day you will reduce your risk of brain cancer by at least 40%. A recent study in the United Kingdom revealed these statistics. If you are having five cups of coffee a day this caffeine potion will also markedly reduce your risk of both mouth and throat cancer. Caffeine has been proven to be more combative than tea. If you only drink decaf then it is time to switch as it has been clinically proven that decaf coffee has no effect at all.

Have you ever noticed that when the whiff of freshly brewed coffee wafts past you a sense of calm and happiness coves over you? Could this have benefits too? When we are happy our brain releases serotonin; commonly known as our happy hormone. Could this constant feeling of happiness and the drinking of coffee combination be a combined fighting force against preventing cancers?

Caffeine has also shown positive results in uterine cancer. Females drinking more than 2 cups of coffee in a day have a lesser chance of getting this form of cancer. There are also very positive results in prostate cancer by caffeine drinkers reducing their risk by 60%.

Remember to also eat and drink well. A healthy and balanced diet is vital. If you love your coffee but currently have sugar in it. It’s time to cut the sugar out completely as it has absolutely no health benefit to you and just accounts for 20% of our daily calorie intake. Just cut it out.

13. Get rid of anger

Many may say that releasing anger will help reduce your risk of getting cancer. Many more will say this is utter nonsense, but either way, holding on to anger is never good for you. Everything begins and ends on a cellular level in our bodies and when we suppress emotions like hatred, resentment, anger or grief we create a toxic space in our cells.

When we suppress these emotions it increases our stress levels and when our stress levels are increased our bodies produce a hormone called Cortisol. When our Cortisol levels are constantly high this reduces our body’s immune system and its ability to fight off infections. In a recent study, it was found that the common thread between 160 women all suffering from breast cancer was anger.

When we suppress emotions it affects many things in our lives; one of them being our sleep and this reduces our body’s ability to produce Melatonin, which is needed for the inhibition of cancer cell growth and is also needed to regulate our immune system. Learn how to express your emotions and let them go. Here are a few beneficial guidelines to get you going (if these don’t work perhaps find a therapist to work with to help you deal with these emotions).

Think before you speak. Take a few deep breaths before you express yourself. You could even just turn around and go for a walk. This allows you time to think about what just happened that made you angry. It also gets your body moving which produces Serotonin our body’s happy hormone. More Serotonin means less Cortisol, which means our immune systems, are less compromised.

14. Go Brazilian with greens and beet

Natural products that are grown free from pesticides of GMOs also go a long way in boosting our immune systems and giving us the strength to fight off cancers. Let’s take a look at a few options (yes we have already covered eating healthy) that are really beneficial to our systems. Brazil nuts are highly rich in selenium which has been proven to kill the unhealthy cells in our bodies. Just two Brazil nuts a day will give your body 200 micrograms of selenium daily. Surely you could have just 2 a day. Certainly, the benefits outweigh your taste buds (for those who don’t like nuts).

Garlic contains high levels of allyl sulfur compounds that are used to stimulate our immune system. Easy to consume, just mix a bit into your food and you will hardly even notice it. Broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower and Bok Choy consumed at least once a week will help reduce the risk of kidney cancer.

Onions and shallots have powerful antioxidants and compounds that prevent cell growth. If you are not mad about having onion breath you can then rather eat; scallions, chives or Vidalia onions. If you do like onions but not the onion breathe then just eat a bit of parsley with it. This removes the strong onion breath. Works well for garlic breath as well.

Beetroot with its rich red colors comes with a serious cancer-fighting antioxidant known as Betalain. This powerful fighter is formidable in its actions in our systems. They actually starve tumors and slow down cell divisions. Researchers have proved that if you add beets to your daily diet you reduce your risk of cancer.

15. Don’t get taken by the cleaners

Many may think that the Dry Cleaners that so many of us make use of on a weekly basis have nothing to do with cancer. Well, you would be wrong. The process of dry cleaning clothes is just that DRY, they do not use water to clean the clothing items. Your clothes are soaked with perc to clean it.

Many of these cleaners use the chemical Perchloroethylene or tetrachloroethylene (commonly just known as perc). This chemical has been proven to cause both kidney and liver damage due to constant breathing in or being exposed to this chemical against our skin. Remember everything that goes through our bodies goes through our cleansing filters i.e. kidneys and liver.

When buying new clothes, or going through your existing wardrobe to find something to wear avoid purchasing or wearing items that can only be dry cleaned and rather opt for clothing that can be washed in your own washing machine at home or even by hand.

If you do have items that need dry cleaning then when you collect them from the cleaners remove the clothing items from the plastic bags they come back from the laundry in and hang them in a place in your home for a while (preferably close to an open window) where they can naturally aerate. By allowing your dry cleaned items to aerate you are allowing the perc to naturally dissipate into the air and be blown away. The US is one of the countries that still use Perc in many of their dry cleaners, whilst many other countries have opted for newer machines that do a great job without using perc.