Exercise and Cancer Prevention
Five hours of weekly exercise may reduce cancer risks.
Here’s a good reminder that fitness offers numerous benefits beyond what meets the eye, including cancer prevention. Findings by researchers affiliated with the American Cancer Society show that Americans could prevent more than 46,000 cancer cases per year if they met the 5-hour weekly minimum of moderate-intensity exercise.
The percentage of cancer cases attributable to a sedentary lifestyle (by state) ranges from 2.3% in Utah to 3.7% in Kentucky. Cancers most associated with lack of exercise include stomach, endometrial, kidney, colon, esophageal, breast and urinary bladder cancers.
“These findings underscore the need to encourage physical activity as a means of cancer prevention and implement community-level interventions that address the various behavioral and socioeconomic barriers to recreational physical activity,” noted study authors.
The study is available in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise (2021; doi:10.1249/MSS.0000000000002801).
See also: More Exercise Helps Prevent Cancer
Shirley Eichenberger-Archer, JD, MA
Shirley Eichenberger-Archer, JD, MA, is an internationally acknowledged integrative health and mindfulness specialist, best-selling author of 16 fitness and wellness books translated into multiple languages and sold worldwide, award-winning health journalist, contributing editor to Fitness Journal, media spokesperson, and IDEA's 2008 Fitness Instructor of the Year. She's a 25-year industry veteran and former health and fitness educator at the Stanford Prevention Research Center, who has served on multiple industry committees and co-authored trade books and manuals for ACE, ACSM and YMCA of the USA. She has appeared on TV worldwide and was a featured trainer on America's Next Top Model.
