7 Ways to Protect Yourself against Lung Cancer

According to the American Cancer Society, more people die of lung cancer than of colon, breast and prostate cancers combined. An estimated 210,000 of new lung cancer cases will be diagnosed in the U.S. and over 160,000 people will die this year from lung cancer.

Most cases can be avoided since smoking cigarettes is the #1 reason people get lung cancer. Lung cancer can also develop if you’ve been exposed to high levels of harmful environmental toxins such as secondhand smoke, randon, radiation or asbestos.

Seven of the best ways to avoid getting lung cancer are:

1. Don’t smoke! Sadly, cigarette smoking – which is in our control – causes 90% of lung cancer conditions. The more cigarettes you smoke per day and the earlier you started smoking, the greater your risk of lung cancer.
2. Know the symptoms, including:
   • A cough that doesn't go away and gets worse
   • Unexplained weight loss
   • Chest and shoulder pain and/or achiness
   • Coughing up blood
   • Shortness of breath, wheezing or hoarse voice
   • Reoccurring pneumonia or bronchitis
   • Swelling in the neck and face
   • Being more tired than usual
3. Eat lots of fruits and vegetables to fight lung cancer and all other cancers and diseases. Eating as many different colors of fruits and vegetables as you can is best, but shoot for eating at least five servings of each a day. Beans, tofu and tea have also been shown to protect against cancers.
4. Get more exercise in order to improve your body’s immune system and reduce inflammation. Exercise is so powerful that even smokers who work out regularly have a slightly lower risk of lung cancer than those smokers who don’t exercise.
5. Stay clear of secondhand smoke. Two hours of sitting in a smoke-filled room is equal to smoking four cigarettes! Fortunately, 31 states have legally banned smoking in public places and more states are in the process of putting no-smoking laws into effect. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is working towards a ban on smoking in all U.S. restaurants, bars and work places by 2010.
6. Check your home for randon, a toxic, odorless gas that seeps in from underground uranium deposits, especially in rocky, mountainous regions. The only way to accurately check for randon is through a home test that costs about $10.00. Call the National Safety Council for the test or for more information at (800) 767-7236 or visit www.nsc.org.
7. Avoid air pollution. On smoggy days, try to exercise and work indoors. If you can’t, try to be outside in the morning or evening since the heat and sun makes smog the most toxic in the middle of the day. Stay away from the busiest streets that will spew out the highest level of pollutants.