• Do not eat meat more than half kilogram per week; eat vegetables abundantly and reasonable amount of fruits.

• Do sports everyday like you are going to work.

• Turn the lights off and fall asleep after mid-night.

• Do not ignore regular health check-ups for early diagnosis.

• Ventilate classrooms and schools every day in order to protect children against carcinogenic radon gas that accumulate in indoor areas.

• Keep your children away from cell phones until 13.

• Do not allow computer and modem their your room; unplug them at night.

QUIT SMOKING IMMEDIATELY:

1- Smoking: Studies show that smoking even one cigarette per day can cause cancer. In this regard, smoking other tobacco products, such as water pipe, cigar and pipe and passive smoking also pose risk. For example, always remember that you are exposed to nicotine equal to approximately 50 cigarettes in one session of water pipe! Do not allow anybody smoke around you.

TAKE CARE OF YOUR BODY WEIGHT AND TIDY UP YOUR KITCHEN

2- Eating habit and optimum body weight: Maintaining optimum body weight implies living farthest to cancer. Our optimum body weight is roughly last two digits of our height in centimeters or maximum 5 kg. more. We should adopt an eating habit that should ensure optimum body weight throughout our life. In this end,

a- HALF KILOGRAM MEAT: Do not eat more than half kilogram meat per week.

b-FORGET ABOUT WHITE FOODS: Stay away from bakery foods and sweets.

c. PREFER CORRECT FAT: You should not allow any fat in your kitchen other than healthy oils such as olive oil, hazelnut oil, canola oil and corn oil.

d- ABUNDANT VEGETABLES AND REASONABLE AMOUNT OF FRUITS: We should eat mixed salad, vegetable meal and reasonable amount of season fruits every day.

e- DO NOT SMOKE FOODS: Do not eat foods cooked with unhealthy techniques, such as smoking, barbecue and frying.

f- ATTENTION FOR ALCOHOL: We should drink alcohol at very low amounts or stop drinking.

g- INSIST ON ORGANIC FOODS: All of our foods should be natural and organic and they should not contain additives or preservatives. We should persistently seek organic products. Avoid genetically modified products.

h- DO NOT EAT BEFORE GOING TO SLEEP: Stop eating minimum 3 hours before going to sleep.

DO SPORTS EVERY DAY AS IF GOING TO WORK

3- Sports: We should do exercises regularly not only for maintaining optimum body weight but also for strengthening our immune system. You should do exercises minimum for 3 to 4 days a week or optimally, you should jog for half an hour every day. Moreover, exercise with and without equipment will certainly make contributions to our health. You should get accustomed with going to gym every day such as going to work.

TURN THE LIGHTS OFF AFTER MID-NIGHT

4- Regular sleep schedule: Adults should sleep for sequential 7.5 hours every day. Moreover, we should start falling asleep not later than mid-night in a dark environment in order to ensure secretion of melatonin – a hormone that protects us against cancer. Daytime sleep does not provide the same benefit.

VENTILATE SCHOOLS AND CLASSROOMS

5- Indoor gases: We should ventilate our home, work place and schools and classrooms, where our children spend many hours, for 5 to 10 minutes in order to get rid of carcinogenic gases, particularly radon, that accumulate throughout the night. Radon is one of the most important causes of the lung cancer. It may be especially responsible for lung cancers that are diagnosed in non-smokers.

KEEP YOUR CHILD AWAY FROM CELL PHONES

6- Electromagnetic radiation: We should take measures against exposure to non-ionizing radiation that interests us more than a nuclear war or ionizing radiation secondary to a nuclear accident, such as the one recently faced in Japan. In this end,

a- LIMIT USE OF CELL PHONE: We should keep our children away from cell phones until age of 12 to 13 years, since brain development continues. Adults should also use cell phones maximum for 30 minutes in a day and earphones must be used.

b- SHUT OFF MODEM: Do not forget that small home appliances emit substantial electromagnetic radiation. Do not allow wireless modem, cell phone and other appliances to your room while you sleep. Heaters must be at minimum 2-m distance to your bed. If possible, live in a house that is safely away from base stations or high-voltage lines.

LEARN MEANS OF SUN PROTECTION

7- Sun: Hazardous ultraviolet-B rays of sun require protection measures for everybody in summer and people who live at snowy high altitudes in winter. Swimming in sea should be avoided from 10.00 to 15.00 in summer and sun protection equipment should be used if you go out. Sun protection is especially important for people who are blond, have freckles and have more than 20 nevi in body. You always remember that tanning creams will never ensure real protection. You should never visit solariums.

EARLY DIAGNOSIS IS IN YOUR HANDS

8- Preventive medicine procedures: The cheapest and most efficient way to prevent cancer is not being caught. In this end,

a- CHECK-UP IS NOT LUXORIOUS: Everyone should have health check-up minimum once a year.

b- SEEK HELP FROM YOUR DOCTOR: There are routine anti-cancer screening programs for breast, colorectal, cervical, lung and prostatic cancers; discuss them with your doctor.

c- DO NOT SKIP VACCINES: Some vaccines (hepatitis, cervix etc.) provide protection against cancer.

d- KEEP AWAY FROM HORMONES: We recommend menopausal women to use medications other than hormone medicines, also known as “hormone replacement therapy”.

e- ATTENTION TO GENES: Persons with genetic predisposition should have risks assessed by oncologists and necessary measures should be taken.

TALK WITH YOUR BOSS TO HAVE MEASURES TAKEN

9- Protection against various chemicals and industrial substances:

a- DON’T LET YOUR WORK PLACE MAKE YOU CANCER: The cause is related with our work in a substantial part of cancers. If we especially expose to various chemicals, dye substances and industrial dusts (asbestos, silica, coal), we should ask employer to take measures necessary for industrial hygiene. Special clothing and masks, well ventilated rooms and cabinets, regular health check-up and resting at frequent intervals should be ensured.

b- KNOW WHAT YOU WEAR: Another issue that exposes us to chemicals are azo dyes and hazardous chemicals that are used in garments and toys imported from Far East. We should keep away from those products.

c- HAIR DYES ARE NOT INNOCENT: We should always remember that hair dyes play role especially in cancers deriving from blood and bone marrow.

d- EAT FRESH FOODS IN SEASON: Remember that non-organic foods contain chemical in high concentrations. Therefore, the best approach is to eat fruits and vegetables of that season.

e- STAY AWAY FROM EXHAUST GAS: If you spend long time in traffic, we expose to many carcinogenic gases, especially diesel exhaust gases.

DO NOT COMPLAIN ABOUT BEING STRESSES, CREATE SOLUTIONS

10- Stress management techniques: If there is any factor in our life that causes stress, the best solution is to get rid of it. If not possible, we should learn methods to cope with stress. For example, do sports regularly, have journeys and start hobbies. You can deal with arts or take role in various social activities. These will help us coping with stressful daily routines. We should necessarily seek professional support for stress that threatens mental health.

from Prof. Andaç Argon