breast cancer.... can catch you young!

youth is the best time of human life. Its that carefree stage when a person need not worry about health. But with the change in lifestyle people now a days are more prone to diseases early in there 20's. "BREAST CANCER" is one among those, what was once considered a disease of old age, is now seeing a shift and is increasingly affecting younger women. "OCTOBER MONTH" is observed as "WORLD BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH". this article is all about the various causes of cancer especially breast cancer.

CAUSES:

LIFESTYLE:

• To put it simple, consists of our day to day practices, which include diet, exercise and other habits.
• It differs from country to country and even within the country between one individual to another.
• Our way of living life has undergone a sea change in the past 20- 30 years, because of this the incidence of cancer is more.

SMOKING:

• The most important health hazard in INDIA is the consumption of tobacco.
• Indian women have now figured right on top in an infamous list- smoking in a shocking trend India has now more female smokers- over 12.1 million, than any country except the united states.
• One in every five female tobacco users in India uses the smokeless form as against one in 10 who smoke. Also, an average Indian woman is taking up smoking at 17.5 years as against 18.8 years among men. These were the new estimates of global tobacco use, published in the medical journal the Lancet few months ago. 
• Cigarette smoking is mostly an urban phenomenon while beedi smoking is usually a rural practice.
• Smoking has led to increased incidence of tobacco related cancers such as oral, lung and esophagus. 
• This in turn has led to increase in the number of women with lung cancer in India.

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY:

• The increasing trend of breast cancer in India has been attributed in part to the decrease in the physical activity.
• There has been consistent research evidence that those patients who perform adequate physical activity are at lesser risk of developing cancer of colon,breast and uterus.

 BODY WEIGHT:

• With the change in life style and incidence of obesity increasing, there has been an increased incidence of cancers of colon, breast,  uterus and gall bladder.
• Reports have proven the association of higher incidence of cancer among people who are over weight.

DIET AND ALCOHOL:

• High fat consumption has been associated with breast cancer.
• High alcohol consumption has been related to oral, pharyngeal, breast and bowel cancers.
• With the westernized food habits and decrease in consumption of dietary fiber, the incidence of colon and rectal cancers among Indians has been going up.
• Apart from these there are many other factors, most important among them are use of cell phones and consumption of areated soft drinks.

Adopting a healthy life style with proper physical activity, a healthy and balanced diet, avoiding the consumption of alcohol or drinking in moderation will go a long way in protecting oneself from cancer. ESPECIALLY BREAST CANCER.