Do Women Know Which Lifestyle Choices May Affect Cancer Risk?

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. - June 11, 2013 - PRLog -- New Rochelle, NY—The lifetime risk for cancer is greater than 1 in 3 for women in the U.S., but most women do not make the lifestyle choices recommended by the American Cancer Society to reduce that risk and prevent cancer. A multifaceted new survey determined how women view diet and exercise in relationship to cancer and whether they believe they are engaging in healthy behaviors, and whether their diet and exercise choices really meet the minimum recommendations. The results are presented in Journal of Women’s Health, a peer-reviewed publication from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available free on the Journal of Women’s Health website at http://www.liebertpub.com/jwh.

In "Lifestyle and Cancer Prevention in Women: Knowledge, Perceptions, and Compliance with Recommended Guidelines," Jennifer Irvine Vidrine, PhD and colleagues from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center (Houston) and Prevention Magazine (Emmaus, PA) report that less than 10% of the women who said they eat a healthy diet actually met the American Cancer Society minimum fruit and vegetable intake recommendations, which is 2 servings of fruit and 3 servings of vegetables per day. Less than 40% of the women who reported regular physical activity met the American Cancer Society minimum recommendations of 30 minutes of moderate physical activity five days per week. Women with less education and racial/ethnic minorities had greater discrepancies between beliefs and behavior.

Overall, more than half of the women who participated in the survey failed to meet the minimum recommendations for physical activity and/or for daily consumption of fruits and vegetables.

“The results of this study suggest that we need to help women find practical ways to integrate adequate levels of cancer prevention behaviors into their daily lives,” says Susan G. Kornstein, MD, Editor-in-Chief of Journal of Women’s Health, Executive Director of the Virginia Commonwealth University Institute for Women’s Health, Richmond, VA, and President of the Academy of Women’s Health.

About the Journal
Journal of Women’s Health, published monthly, is a core multidisciplinary journal dedicated to the diseases and conditions that hold greater risk for or are more prevalent among women, as well as diseases that present differently in women. The Journal covers the latest advances and clinical applications of new diagnostic procedures and therapeutic protocols for the prevention and management of women’s healthcare issues. Complete tables of content and a sample issue may be viewed on the Journal of Women’s Health website at http://www.liebertpub.com/jwh. Journal of Women’s Health is the Official Journal of the Academy of Women’s Health and the Society for Women’s Health Research.

About the Academy
Academy of Women’s Health (http://www.academyofwomenshealth.org) is an interdisciplinary, international association of physicians, nurses, and other health professionals who work across the broad field of women’s health, providing its members with up-to-date advances and options in clinical care that will enable the best outcomes for their women patients. The Academy’s focus includes the dissemination of translational research and evidence-based practices for disease prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of women across the lifespan.

About the Publisher
Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including Population Health Management, Thyroid, Metabolic Syndrome and Related Disorders, and Breastfeeding Medicine. Its biotechnology trade magazine, Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (GEN), was the first in its field and is today the industry’s most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm’s 70 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website at http://www.liebertpub.com.

Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.    140 Huguenot Street, New Rochelle, NY 10801   www.liebertpub.com
Phone: (914) 740-2100    (800) M-LIEBERT     Fax (914) 740-2101