Thursday, November 17, 2011

Lung Cancer in Scott County, Virginia: Don't Be A DOLT

When a recent analysis of Virginia's health problems ranked our 132 counties from healthiest to unhealthiest, Scott County occupied position 83. This is partly because of our high proportion of retired citizens...but the survey found our biggest health problems to be preventable, not part of the normal aging process. The acronym and slogan "Don't Be 'A DOLT'" came to mind as I read the list of our five most common health issues: Asthma, Drug-related problems, Obesity, Lung cancer, and Tooth loss.

Before the twentieth century, lung cancer was as rare as multiple myeloma. The average doctor never saw a case of either disease. In the twentieth century, lung cancer suddenly became common, due to an increase in airborne carcinogens. Individuals cannot completely avoid exposure to the factors that increase our risk of developing lung cancer, but we can choose to keep our individual risk low. Here are some things we can do to reduce our risk of developing lung cancer:

Prevent Lung Cancer Tip #1. Don't smoke cigarettes. Smoking a pipe isn't healthy either, but the actual cancer-causing agent in cigarettes is the dioxin released by burning bleached white paper, rather than the tobacco itself. So if you can't break the nicotine habit altogether, switch to a pipe and/or gum.

Prevent Lung Cancer Tip #2. Don't hang around smokers. Secondhand smoke increases your risk too.

Prevent Lung Cancer Tip #3. Avoid airborne chemicals. Radon and asbestos are the most commonly discussed chemicals that may be contaminating the air in your home. Click here to find out about some others that are also known to increase your risk of developing lung cancer.

Prevent Lung Cancer Tip #4. Just say no to alcohol. Regular use of alcohol in any form (including red wine) can raise your risk of lung cancer, breast cancer if female, and many other bad things. If you want the heart-healthy benefits that have been touted for red wine, eat red and purple grapes. Red and purple grapes, including the famous Concord variety, grow well in Scott County.

Prevent Lung Cancer Tip #5. Never drive when you can walk. Exhaust fumes from motor vehicles contain cancer-causing pollutants too.

Prevent Lung Cancer Tip #6. If you burn coal or household garbage, burn them in an enclosed stove or furnace. Fumes from burning trash (even the junk paper you use to light the fire) contain all sorts of harmful chemicals, including some known carcinogens. Don't burn them in an open fireplace or grill where people will be breathing the fumes directly.

Prevent Lung Cancer Tip #7. Eat more antioxidant nutrients. Antioxidant nutrients are found in fresh fruits and vegetables, some herbs and spices, and green tea. When you eat foods containing antioxidants, these substances counteract the inevitable cell damage that makes it possible for cancer to form in your body. Try to make antioxidant-rich foods the base of your diet.

Prevent Lung Cancer Tip #8. Wear a mask when working with anything that releases dust or fumes. The dust of tiny particles of Fiberglas, thick layers of dust from a neglected house, mold in a damp basement, cut grass and leaves from a lawn mower, etc., may or may not contain known carcinogens, but it does contain irritants that can damage lung tissue and increase your overall risk of lung cancer.

Prevent Lung Cancer Tip #9. Limit saturated fat, especially from meat and foods fried in lard or butter, in your diet. According to the Center for Disease Control, medical science has yet to quantify exactly how much of the benefit of a plant-based diet comes from lowering cholesterol intake and how much comes from boosting antioxidant intake, but there is evidence that people who eat fewer, leaner meat dishes and more vegetables are less likely to develop lung cancer.

Prevent Lung Cancer Tip #10. Don't risk tuberculosis. Yes, the disease still exists. If you've been exposed, kill it before it starts to make you ill. Tuberculosis damages the lungs, leaving survivors more vulnerable to lung cancer.

Lung cancer is not a death sentence. If caught in time, it's often curable. Although the focus of these "Don't Be A DOLT" articles is on prevention, the web pages linked to this article also contain detailed information about treatment.

SOURCES

http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/lung/basic_info/risk_factors.htm

For some reason, the computer on which I'm typing this doesn't like the Mayo Clinic's lung cancer page: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/lung-cancer/DS00038/DSECTION=risk-factors.

Another site to visit: www.lungcancer.org/reading

Another one that may help patients and families understand diagnosis and treatment information: http://www.cancercenter.com/lung-cancer/lung-cancer-information.cfm

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