‘How to avoid them’
WHEN celebrated lawyer Late Chief Gani Fawehinmi died in year 2009 due to cancer of the lungs, there was a general hue and cry against the notorious killer known as cancer. But even before that, many celebrities had bowed to death through the wicked blow from cancer. Ace sports broadcaster, Yinka Craig, got a knock out punch from cancer in 2008 at age 60. There were prolonged tears for many that knew they will miss that voice of sports commentary on television.
More tears flowed freely when society-loved wife of Timi Alaibe, the late Alaere Alaibe, took a bow and left life’s stage due to death by cancer. And so did late Clara Oshiomole, the late wife of Edo Governor Adam Oshiomole, who departed, leaving painful tears to her loved ones. In Edo State and beyond, it was difficult to control the flowing tears, as many refused to be comforted.
For the death-ravaging cancer, the list continued and continues stubbornly. From Sam Ojebode, to fashion darling Remi Lagos, Remi Abiola, Mrs. Maryam Babangida and even the one still fresh in the mind, late Dr. Olusola Saraki. These are some of the celebrated victims. But death by cancer does not hit only the rich. All across Nigeria, more and more people have died sometimes from ailments relating to cancer.
Sociologists and medical experts that we recently spoke to give the conditions that could lead, directly or indirectly, to cancer and how to avoid those situations. Cancer, once described as a ‘rich man’s illness,’ is now ravaging both the low and the mighty. And at close range, you never can tell, who the next victim will be.
Abuja-based health and wellness consultant, Dr. Stella Chijioke, explains how some of the habits of the rich make them susceptible to the dreaded ailments.
He says: “Our top flight executives are very much endangered because of a daily lifestyle that gives room to cancer. They live from chair to chair, sitting through one boardroom to another, with little or no activity. From there, they swing into air-conditioned cars straight to their door steps at home, into another chair and eventually into bed. The routine is like that, day in and day out.
“Then the food consumption of many include heavy meals because they have too much money at their disposal and they drink alcohol and spirit. Some even inject themselves with different sorts of things (drugs). So, with that, cancer is already knocking on the door, and it will only take a little time, before the door comes falling down.”
Prof. SRA Akinbo, a consultant at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Idi-Araba, Lagos, says: “One of the major reasons for cancer truly is food intake. This is a big topic on its own. These days, one notices that more and more people are into the eating of refined foods, canned foods. Some of these over processed foods lead to cancer. Also our lifestyles, especially for those of us that live in the urban, we are exposed to a lot of radiation. People are in traffic for longer time and breathing in fumes emitted from automobile. All these are factors that lead to cancer. That is because the toxic goes into the system and induces all sorts of things and illnesses. There are various causes of cancer. Food is one of it, exposure to radiation is another, and some other major causes.
“However, concerning what people can do or what lifestyle to keep to avoid cancer, we have left the traditional; that is, cancer used to be feared in the olden days and avoided through the eating of fresh foods. But fresh fruits are really missing in our meals today. Also in urban areas these days, people are exposed to generators and the attending fumes. In a house of 20 occupants, for instance, everybody there has generators. So more and more people are now likely to have cancer due to the lifestyle they presently keep. Then also there is the issue of age. Old age could also induce cancer.
“Of course, I will recommend exercise as a necessary part of our daily lifestyle. But then also, exercise is not limited to just the avoidance of cancer; we need exercise in our lives. In those days, things were different. My father actually died at the age of 104. When you saw him then, you would have found it difficult to believe because, he was still agile. The lifestyle that they had then helped a lot. They used to trek for kilometres going to farms everyday. That was a good form of exercise. Then also, they had original foods, fresh foods from the farm, which they used to eat.
“Still concerning exercise as a lifestyle in avoiding cancer, one has to note that there are different kinds of exercises which should be recommended on an individual basis because everyone of us has different health challenges. For instance, someone who is hypertensive, there is a type of exercise that he should do. So everyone cannot do the same kinds of exercise. The most important thing is that before we get involved in any kind of exercise routine, we have to get screened. When the kind of health challenge you have has been ascertained, then exercise routine can be determined. So it can be in terms of just sitting down or standing, or jogging or be on treadmill and so on. Exercising should be an individual thing and not generalised.
“There are some organisations now that have programmes such as ‘walk for life.’ However, walking too fast for some people who may be hypertensive, could trigger off another kind of thing that can lead to heart attack, especially, when you are over 30 and 40, you have to be very careful on the type of food you eat and exercise that you do.”
A dietitian with LUTH, Titilope Adelani, says cancer is avoidable through a dietary plan which comprises eating a well-balanced diet daily. “Such dietary plan”, she recommends, “should start early in life for an individual to avoid cancer in future. It should start at a tender age so that it will be part of the child, leading him or her into adulthood. That will also make the child to be eating well when he or she grows up.”
She adds: “Foods that should be eaten to avoid cancer include whole grain, legumes, fruits, vegetables, and protein. But there are also others. A child should start eating these from age two. And for an adult who has a family history of cancer, the person should take high protein, high calories, low fat foods and high fibre diet with intake of fruits in between meals.
“A dietitian actually has a role to play in the lifestyle of people generally to make them avoid having cancer. A dietitian plans the menu and ensures the people follows it. A dietician’s role is also to monitor such. And for an adult that is already diagnosed with cancer, it is important that such persons eat high calorie, moderate and low fat protein foods. Such persons are also supposed to use plant sources of oil for cooking, also depending on the severity of the cancer.
“Foods to totally avoid are foods that are fatty products. Well, as a lifestyle, I will recommend that people generally eat very well, avoid alcohol, eat fruits and vegetables and do exercises.”
An Assistant Chief Dietitian also with LUTH, Bolanle Tijani, describes cancer as “a terrible disease that is preventable, although there is not much that anyone can do.” She added: “But with good healthy diet, one can reduce the risk of getting cancer. The kind of food encouraged is what I refer to as green, green, green. What I mean by this is that, when you are taking food, ensure that it is green! Avoid foods that are roasted or fried. Also avoid barbecued foods, make sure that most of the foods that you eat are fresh. We are advocating these days, that is, trying to encourage people to go back to the use of our former pots, cooking utensils that were used in those days; pots made from mud are more heathy. But the problem with that is that it may not look civilised, especially when friends come calling, but the truth is that these pots are believed to be more healthy in using to cook.
“For people with a history of cancer in the family, I can say that cancer is not a transmittable illness; there is a risk factor, and there are different kinds of cancer. There is the leukaemia, the blood cancer, the cervical cancer, pelvic cancer, colon cancer, lung cancer, brain cancer, various types. It is not genetically transferred from one to another but variously during maturation of the foetus. That is a risk factor that can cause it.
“What a dietician can do is that if and when cancer has been diagnosed, the first thing is that the patient should go for medical attention, surgical operation afterwards. A dietitian is then to encourage the patient to eat heathy foods to prevent the growth and multiplication of the cancer cells and also keep eating green, green, green with all the family group of foods to encourage a healthy eating habit.
“As a lifestyle, everyone should eat protein, eat carbohydrates, avoid fatty foods, but most of all, we encourage more of fibre. For cancer patients, eating of fibre is very important for quick recovery, as they serve as anti-oxidants for the eradication of the cancer cells. Foods such as water melon, oranges, banana, water leaf, apple and so on should be eaten.
“It is difficult to totally avoid particular foods; we don’t even advise it, it is only that smaller quantities are recommended; even for the over-blown cancer patients, reduction of the intake of particular foods are recommended. But then, we advocate the avoidance of foods with folic acid. Even then, folic acid cannot completely be denied because there is folic acid in most foods, even in animal protein and vegetables. So the important thing is to reduce the intake of folic acid.
“The eating habits and lifestyle will dictate more as to whether a person is likely to get cancer or not. To women, I will advise that they eat healthy and avoid alcohol, avoid an environment that is stuffy or congested. That is a challenge in Lagos where fumes are all over the place. Even in traffic when you have your air-conditioner on, the fumes from other vehicles still find a way of getting in. Exercise is very good for the body, at least do it for an hour everyday. These are healthy lifestyles that can make one avoid cancer. Then reduce your alcohol intake, do not take alcohol as if you are drinking water.”
According to a nutritionist at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Ikeja, Lagos, Justina Akagu-Osojiese, “somehow, cancer is avoidable through a dietary plan because some of the foods that we eat now are being prepared with addictives that are not really not good for the body.” She adds: “For instance, we have things that are today used as substitute for sugar. Sacarrin, for instance, is used as a substitute. There are findings that such prolong usage can cause cancer.
“As far as I am concerned, a dietary plan should start for everybody right from day one, that is at child birth. I say this because it is very necessary to consider a diet plan for a child. So we give the baby milk. And at different ages, we give a child appropriate foods, not just anything in sight.
“To avoid cancer it’s better to eat natural foods. Most of the time, however, there is usually no problem with most foods that are not natural, but it is the addictive that are used in preparing them that causes or could lead to somebody having cancer. For instance, too, it is better to eat oranges directly than take orange juice that has been processed, especially for an adult. The fruits are natural but you do not know what has been added to produce the juice. The same applies to canned foods because they always have preservatives. Sometimes, they are kept for long periods; the addictive can influence the cause when eaten, the potassium, the sodium are major cause of worry.
“For those already with cancer, natural foods are just good for them. Cancer is a very terrible disease that destroys the cells of the body. So it is good to give someone already with cancer, a high protein diet and a high calorie diet. By high calorie diet, I mean the carbohydrate family of foods. They give energy. Most cancer patients are very weak, we give them that for energy. To replenish the cells that are being destroyed, a cancer patient needs high protein foods and these are fish, meat, egg, milk and so on and these are augmented with plant set of foods.
“I think that people should be more active in lifestyle; we should avoid high calorie dense foods; we should be careful to eat foods that have all the class foods to give us adequate nutrients in the body, protein, carbohydrates, fat and oil, minerals and vitamins which is in fruits and vegetables. Our foods should be adequate and that is commonly referred to as balanced diet. We have what is called anti-oxidants in our foods; they are the ones that destroy those unwanted things, or harmful foreign things in our body. So, we should just eat right.”
Dr. Stella Chijioke, Managing Director, Ultimate Health and Wellness Ltd, Abuja, posits that with a particular cautious lifestyle, cancer can be avoided. She adds that, that could be complemented by a combination of three things.
“Health and wellness stands on three legs. One of the legs is diet, which means whatever you put inside your mouth, food, drink, smoke, snuffing or injection. The second is increased activity, which culminates in exercise. Any small activity is better than no activity at all. This helps the heart. Do anything that can make you sweat, like walking, swimming and so on. Brisk walk is good and not expensive.
“The third leg of the tripod is adequate rest and management of your stress level. Every human being undergoes one form of stress or the other. Without stress, you cannot live a balanced life. But in certain situations, the stress level gets too much, so you have to manage it well. If you don’t, things like hypertension, diabetes and all that sets in. Complete health and wellness means that the above three legs must be implemented.
“Additional habit is the drinking of water. One of the ways of managing stress well is having enough sleep. Seven to eight hours of sleep at night is mandatory so that your body can use that opportunity to recharge. REM Sleep is the highest form of sleep, because some people think that they are sleeping but they are not really sleeping. You have to get into the REM Sleep before you really rest.
“We are all setting ourselves for cancer, though we have better diagnosis, but most people are gearing themselves towards cancer. If you check the three legs of wellness that are stated above, you will find out that most of us are not eating well or eat the wrong things, smoke or drink the wrong things. Some of us inhale or inject ourselves with the wrong things (drugs). These are the wrong parts of civilisation that we are imbibing.
“Most people in the urban cities are not resting well. In the effort to make it because of high cost of rent, transportation, school fees, people don’t get home early to rest and sleep, they are hustling all over the place or staying in the office late, believing that they are resting but they are burning their candles at both ends.
“Some people don’t even get into activity. They move from car into the house with little or no activity, into chairs at home or office. And one of the worse things or habits that the executives have is long hours of sitting on chairs. This is the latest killer that many don’t know. We are supposed to sit down not more than two hours and that is if our jobs are sedentary. Even market women sit in one place for too long at a time. The use of maids are not too helpful too because the madam ends up sitting down too much, while throwing errands around. She’s not getting up from that seat at all. So, it is not just the executives alone that sits from one boardroom to another.
“Executives take elevators; nobody takes the stairs anymore, these are silent killers. These are ways that we are all driving our selves towards having cancer. Even younger people are coming up with some of these degenerating diseases. We shouldn’t be seen as getting old at 50, if we are living the right lifestyle. If you are living the right kind of lifestyle, then it will be difficult to develop cancer in the 40s. But these days, cancer could even be diagnosed among the younger ones. There is a book called ‘alleluia diet.’ This book tells us more about this. We eat the wrong things.”
A Lagos-based medical practitioner, Dr. Ogunkoya, says: “To avoid cancer, people need to stop taking these cancer-inducing foods; they are: sweetened beverages, fried potato, hot dog, donut and burnt meat. The top anti-cancer foods for people to take are: green vegetables, tumeric, tomatoes, and rice. Then cancer-fighting foods are: tomatoes, garlic, grape fruits, ginger, ginger pepper, white berry, ginseng, broccoli, lemon, mustard seed and rosemary.
“What you eat determines your healthy habits too. People should also try to live at places with minimised smoke and fumes. Do not stay where people who smoke are, because if you do, you are as well smoking with them as you inhale. It causes cancer of the lungs. And go for check-up and clean up your system regularly with cancer-fighting foods.”
