By: Health Day News
A New Year’s resolution to take better care of yourself is one you should keep, especially in the era of COVID-19.
Wearing a mask, maintaining a safe distance from others and washing your hands frequently are going remain important in 2021. But don’t forget to prioritize a healthy lifestyle that improves your overall health and quality of life, and helps prevent cancer, according to experts at the Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey.
The institute offers the following tips:
Eat a healthy diet and watch your weight.
- For cancer prevention, the American Institute for Cancer Research and the American Cancer Society recommend maintaining a healthy weight, staying active and eating a healthy diet. That’s one rich in whole grains, vegetables, fruit and beans, with a minimum of red and processed meats, fast food and processed foods high in fat, starches or sugars. Avoid sugary drinks.
- Cutting out alcohol lowers the risk of many cancers, including breast cancer.
Exercise regularly. It has many benefits for physical and mental well-being.
- Current guidelines recommend at least 150 to 300 minutes a week of moderate-intensity, or 75 to 150 minutes a week of vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity.
- Muscle-strengthening activities should also be included.
- Sitting for a long time watching TV or using the computer is discouraged.
- Find fun ways to stay active, such as online exercise classes, or walking or jogging in your neighborhood.
Quit smoking.
- Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death. Quitting smoking will lower the risk for many cancers, including those of the lungs, mouth, throat, blood, bladder, esophagus, stomach, pancreas and kidneys.
Getting preventive care is an important step to manage your health.
This includes cancer screenings, which can detect cancer before it spreads.Many smokers make a New Year’s resolution to quit, so the American Lung Association offers advice to improve their chances of success.
Smoking is a risk factor for severe COVID-19, so quitting is more important than ever, the association noted.
But keep in mind: Switching to electronic cigarettes is not quitting, the lung association stressed. E-cigarettes are tobacco products that contain nicotine, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration hasn’t approved any e-cigarette as a smoking cessation aid.
Learn from past experience. Most smokers have tried to quit before and can get discouraged when they look back at previous failed attempts. Instead, analyze what helped you during previous attempts and what you’ll do differently this time, the association advised in a news release.
And remember: You don’t have to tackle quitting alone. Enrolling in a tobacco counseling program — such as the American Lung Association’s Freedom From Smoking — can improve your chance of success by up to 60% when used in combination with medication, according to the lung association.
Talk to a doctor about FDA-approved medications to help you quit. Be sure to follow the directions and use them for the full duration they’re prescribed.
Every smoker can quit. Find the right combination of techniques for you and don’t give up, the association urged. Slip-ups — having a puff or smoking a few cigarettes — are common, but don’t signify failure. The important thing is to keep trying.
“The COVID-19 pandemic presents an opportunity for people, when they’re ready, to find the proven quit smoking support they need,” said Harold Wimmer, the association’s president and CEO.
“Quitting smoking will immediately improve your health and might also decrease your odds of severe illness from COVID-19,” he added. “It’s the perfect way to set yourself up for a healthy new year and healthy years to come.”
