Avoiding Cancer

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Anchor lead: The American Cancer Society has new recommendations on how to reduce your risk for cancer, Elizabeth Tracey reports

Almost one in five cancers in the US could be prevented with better lifestyle choices, the American Cancer Society states in their new guidelines. William Nelson, director of the Kimmel Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins, says physical activity is one factor.

Nelson: In particular what they’ve done this time compared to their previous recommendation is they’ve kind of increased their thoughts as to how much physical activity you should get in your life. An adult should engage in at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity or 75 minutes, hour and 15 minutes of vigorous intensity each week, that was what they previously recommended. Now they say double it basically. 150 to 350 moderate intensity, 75 to 150 vigorous intensity a week.  :30

Nelson says the benefits of exercise for stress reduction, improving sleep quality and weight control contribute to how it may help reduce cancer risk, so this is a goal that’s well worth attempting. At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.