Lean and long-lived
Six good eating habits that will help prevent cancer.

By Sarah Baicker, Medill News Service

Excess body weight, even just a little, increases your risk of cancer, according to a study released by the American Institute for Cancer Research. But staying active and following six rules for good eating can turn the odds back in your favor, researchers say.

Researchers analyzed more than 7,000 large-scale studies over five years and are now convinced, said Philip James, a member of the report's panel of experts, that excess body fat increases risks for cancer of the colon, kidney, pancreas, esophagus and uterus, as well as breast cancer in post-menopausal women.

But the report also found that "there are changes you can make in the way you live that will reduce your risk of getting cancer," said Jeffrey Prince, AICR's vice president for education.

Among the eight steps the 517-page report recommends are six that relate directly to diet. Top of that list: two-thirds of every meal should be made up of plant-based foods, such as whole grains, fruits, vegetables and beans.

Other dietary recommendations include limiting intake of "energy-dense foods," foods that contain high amounts of fat, sugar or calories, such as fried foods, hamburgers and soft drinks. Consumption of alcohol, red meat and processed meats were also linked to elevated cancer risk. The report advocates eating no more than 11 ounces of red meat per week, and no more than one alcoholic drink per day for women, and two per day for men.

The panel specifically advocated abstinence from all processed meats, such as bacon, ham and other lunchmeats. They were unable to find a level of consumption that could be considered safe.

In addition to dietary restrictions, the report also recommended being physically active at least 30 minutes every day. Tobacco should be avoided altogether.

Concerned, but willing to change?

In this year's "Facts vs. Fears Survey," an annual breakdown of Americans' health concerns also published by the AICR, more people (39%) listed cancer as their No. 1 health concern.

Yet despite those findings, and despite the researchers' confidence in their recommendations, it is unlikely people will change, said Edward Abramson, professor emeritus of psychology at California State University-Chico and author of "Body Intelligence," a guide to losing weight and eating well without strict dieting.

"I'm sure that there are a couple of people who would latch on and follow them," Abramson said. "But for most people, the immediate reward of having a high-calorie, sugary treat more than offsets the long-term reward of possibly avoiding cancer at some ill-defined point in the future."

"There's nothing intrinsically wrong with [the guidelines]," he said, "except for the fact that people typically don't live like that."

Arthur Frank, medical director of the George Washington University Weight Management Program in Washington, agreed.

"It's very difficult to change the way people eat," he said. "If it weren't, we wouldn't have an obesity epidemic."

The researchers say they understand the difficulty. A second report, to be released next fall, will contain information on how to help the public actually achieve the goals outlined in this year's study.

In the meantime, "Eat less and exercise more," Frank said. "Everything else is a variant of just that -- you cannot violate the laws of thermodynamics."

Eight-step plan

The American Institute for Cancer Research just published its most up-to-date food, nutrition and activity recommendations to help prevent cancer. Here are 8 quick tips:

1. Be as lean as possible without becoming underweight.
2. Be physically active for at least 30 minutes every day. 3. Avoid sugary drinks. Limit consumption of energy-dense foods (particularly processed foods high in added sugar, or low in fiber, or high in fat).
4. Eat more of a variety of vegetables, fruits, whole grains and legumes such as beans.
5. Limit consumption of red meats (such as beef, pork and lamb) and avoid processed meats.
6. If consumed at all, limit alcoholic drinks to 2 for men and 1 for women a day.
7. Limit consumption of salty foods and foods processed with salt (sodium).
8. Don't use supplements to protect against cancer.

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