FANews
FANews
RELATED CATEGORIES
Category Healthcare
SUB CATEGORIES General  |  HIV |  Medical Schemes | 

You can slim down your cancer risk, says Liberty

04 November 2008 Liberty Life

Cancer remains the biggest single driver of dread disease claims received by insurers, but policyholders can ‘slim down’ their risk of cancer by combating obesity and adopting an active lifestyle.

That’s the good news from leading insurer Liberty Life which says that a major attitudinal shift is necessary to fight cancer – from the old assumption that cancer is totally arbitrary to the modern finding that cancer is preventable and our lifestyle choices can help protect us.

Erica Stuart, from Group Advisory Services at Liberty Life, explains: “Lifestyle is defined as the personal customs or habits of an individual or group of individuals. With regard to lifestyle, lifestyle refers to dietary habits, physical activity habits, and the social use of substances such as alcohol and tobacco and exposure to other risky behaviours. Chronic diseases of lifestyle are a group of diseases that share risk factors such as unhealthy dietary choices, smoking, lack of physical activity, sedentary behaviour and life stress. These result in various disease processes culminating in high morbidity and mortality due to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease, diabetes, tobacco- and nutrition-induced cancers, chronic bronchitis, emphysema and many others.”

Stuart notes: “Cancer is random in that it can affect anybody regardless of age, gender, race and socio-economic situation, but risk is not hit-or-miss. It can be managed to a large degree by the choices we make.

“Giving up smoking is not the only thing you can do to fight cancer.

“Research confirms a link between obesity and many forms of cancer and now that authoritative international research studies have emphasised the obesity link we can expect insurance companies worldwide to pay even greater attention to body mass as a risk factor when developing dread disease cover products. Start by managing your lifestyle, and your risk of contracting cancer can be reduced by taking control of your weight, exercising more, eating fewer processed foods and more fruits and vegetables.

“You are not doomed by fate or genetics as only a small proportion of cancers are inherited. What you do with your life makes a difference. In general terms, a more slender you has a more slender risk of developing cancer.”

According to CANSA, several studies have found a correlation between body mass, obesity and the risk for post-menopausal breast cancer. The most recent international study by the World Cancer Research Fund and the American Institute for Cancer Research (‘Food, Nutrition, Physical Activity and the Prevention of Cancer: a Global Perspective’) confirms the obesity link across many other cancers.

This is the first major report on cancer prevention to specifically recommend breastfeeding to prevent breast cancer in mothers and to prevent overweight and obesity in children as a protection from cancer.

Liberty says the international experts produced a list of tips that empower men, women and children to better manage cancer risk.

Recommendations are:

  • Be as lean as possible within the normal range of body weight. A body mass index of between 21 and 23 is usually appropriate.
  • Be physically active as part of everyday life.
  • Avoid food and drinks that promote weight gain; that is, energy-dense foods and sugary drinks.
  • Eat mostly foods of plant origin; the average consumption of non-starchy vegetables and fruits should be at least 600g daily along with at least 25g of unprocessed cereals and foods of high dietary fibre. Most diets that are protective against cancer are mainly made up of foods from plant origin.
  • Limit red meat intake and avoid processed meat (average consumption should not exceed 300g a week). Many foods of animal origin are nourishing and healthy in moderate amounts.
  • Limit intake of alcoholic drinks; cancer experts say avoid alcohol, but modest intake may reduce the risk of coronary heart disease.
  • Limit salt consumption; usually to less than 5g a day. Aflatoxin exposure should be minimised. Avoid mouldy cereals or pulses. Salt and salt-preserved foods are a probable cause of stomach cancer. Foods containing aflatoxins are a cause of liver cancer.
  • Meet nutritional needs through diet alone – dietary supplements are not recommended for cancer prevention.
Quick Polls

QUESTION

South Africa went to Davos to pitch itself as an investor-friendly destination, then signed an Expropriation Act. What message does this send to global investors?

ANSWER

Invest at your peril
SA is open for business
Two steps forward, one land grab back
Welcome to Hotel California
fanews magazine
FAnews February 2025 Get the latest issue of FAnews

This month's headlines

Unseen risks: insuring against the impact of AI gone wrong
Machine vs human: finding the balance
Is embedded insurance the end of traditional broker channels?
Client aspirations take centre stage as advisers rethink retirement planning
Maximise TFSA contributions before year-end
Subscribe now