No matter what age, exercise is crucial in keeping not just your colon, but every part of your body healthy and functioning at its best. Once more, according to the Mayo Clinic, exercising up to 150 minutes a week with moderately intense activity has proven to lower your risk of colon cancer.
Exercising:
- Improves circulation and efficiency of your gastrointestinal system
- Reduces insulin levels, which can slow tumor cell growth
- Improves hormonal balance aiding in weight balance and lowering your risk of obesity
Exercise can also be fun, destressing, and a great way to fit in those jeans you’ve been saving all these years.
Walking – Yes walking. There are so many health benefits to walking more than the national average of 3-4,000 steps a day. Lowering sugar cravings, improving mood, increasing quality of sleep, aiding digestion, improving bone density, you name it. But why walking is crucial for anyone looking to prevent colon cancer is that it’s a great way to get started. While complex yoga poses and fad diets get all of the glory, just walking for 30 minutes a day would put you far above the mayo clinic recommendation, and you can do it while listening to your favorite podcast. While many of us may struggle fitting in a workout, almost everyone has time to fit in a short walk with some great tunes.
Yoga – Now about those complex yoga poses. Yoga doesn’t have to mean going to your nearest yoga studio paying an arm and a leg just to get splashed on by a yoga veteran. There are tons of amazing videos on youtube such as yoga with Adriene that can take you on a yoga flow in as little as twenty minutes. Those looking for something more instantly relieving to your gut can try the Supine Twist or Seated Twist 3 times a day for some added constipation relief.
Kegel Exercises – While often mocked in the fitness community by ignorant men, researchers at the Mayo Clinic state that doing exercises like Kegels 3 times a day, can relieve chronic inflammatory issues in the digestive system, and also aid in digestion for both men and women. It’s important though to perform such exercises regularly, as your pelvic floor exercise will work far more effectively when given months of consistent work.
Get Screened!
While exercise is crucial to obesity and lowering the risks of all forms of cancer, including colon cancer, it is important that you get screened for colon cancer regularly. Adults over 45 should get screened regularly and young adults with colon-related problems should also consider getting a screening. Get screened, prevent colon cancer!
