There has been a lot on the news today about a new research report by the World Cancer Research Fund...

If you read the report or visit their website you find the following recommendations for cancer prevention:
1. Be as lean as possible without becoming underweight. Maintain a healthy weight through a balanced diet and regular physical activity to help keep your risk lower.
2. Be physically active for at least 30 minutes every day. Any type of activity counts – the more you do the better! Try to build some into your everyday life.
3. Avoid sugary drinks and limit consumption of energy-dense foods particularly processed foods high in added sugar, or low in fibre, or high in fat. Try to eat lower energy-dense foods such as vegetables, fruits and wholegrains instead. Opt for water or unsweetened tea or coffee in place of sugary drinks.
4. Eat more of a variety of vegetables, fruits, wholegrains and pulses such as beans. As well as eating your 5 A DAY, try to include wholegrains (e.g. brown rice, wholemeal bread and pasta) and/or pulses with every meal.
5. Limit consumption of red meats (such as beef, pork and lamb) and avoid processed meats. Aim to limit intake of red meat to less than 500g cooked weight (about 700-750g raw weight) a week. Try to avoid processed meats such as bacon, ham, salami, corned beef and some sausages.
6. If consumed at all, limit alcoholic drinks to 2 for men and 1 for women a day. If you choose to drink, do so in moderation.
7. Limit consumption of salty foods and food processed with salt. Remember that processed foods, including bread and breakfast cereals, can contain large amounts of salt.
8. Don’t use supplements to protect against cancer. Opt for a balanced diet without supplements.

This contains some really important messages for how we educate our children and young people. If you want to find out more you can visit the World Cancer Research Fund website at http://www.wcrf-uk.org
Chris