Lately it seems that every thing we do or eat causes cancer - or cures it. Everyone in the cancer community has an opinion, and it can be difficult to sift the fact from the fiction. Click through here to see our top 15 cancer myths debunked.
Forgot your daily vitamin? Not to worry. Multivitamins were found to have no effect on cardiovascular disease or cancer risk. If multivitamins are beneficial, the effect is too small to detect, according to the Annals of Internal Medicine Journal 2013.
Think barrels of red wine will ward off cancer? Think again. Alcohol consistently comes up as a possible cause of cancer and it is best to enjoy moderately if at all according to several studies including Cancer Research UK, the American Cancer Society and Journal of the American Medical Association.
An interesting study conducted by the University of Oxford in 2012 found that people who took an aspirin a day for five years were found to have a 37% reduced risk of cancer compared to people who did not take aspirin. Other studies have shown similar, if less dramatic results – however, according to the Oxford University National Cancer Institute, it’s too early to recommend an asprin a day.
Rest assured, your mobile phone is not giving you brain cancer. Doctors at the Danish Cancer Society monitored 420,000 mobile phone users in Denmark from 1982 to 1995 and found no cancer link. There have been several follow-up studies since then, and none have found any evidence of a connection between mobile phone use and cancer.
What about drinking water from a plastic bottle? There has been some concern about chemicals entering the water when exposed to heat, like in a hot car. According to Cancer Research UK, there is no evidence that this happens. Although harmful chemicals can be released when plastic is burned, it is unclear if these are even present in the plastic used in water bottles.
One of the more prevalent claims is that deodorants, antipersperants cause cancer. A 2002 study by Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle found there to be no link between the use of these products and cancer.
Can't live without your soy latte or tofu stir-fry? No need to give them up just yet. Though soy contains chemicals similar to estrogen, a hormone that can promote tumors in breast cells, the 2012 American Cancer Society Guidelines on Nutrition and Physical Activity for Cancer Survivors reports that current research finds no harmful effects to breast cancer survivors from eating soy.
The logic behind this popular myth is that cancer cells exist in an acidic environment, so by starving the cancer cells of acidity they will not be able to grow. Unfortunatly there is no evidence that restricting what you eat can change the pH balance of the entire body and even if it did, that it would have such an effect on cancer, according to the American Institute for Cancer Research.
Birth control pills reduce risk of cancers of the uterus and ovaries but slightly increase the risk of breast cancer. After ten years of stopping the medication, however, the risk for cancer returned to the same level as if they had never used the birth control pills, according to the National Cancer Institute. No need to go off the Pill just yet.
The ony problem with sugar is that it causes weight gain, which in turn puts you at a higher risk for certain cancers, but sugar itself does not directly affect cancer. According to Dr. Kyle Holen at UW Paul P. Carbone Comprehensive Cancer Center in Wisconsin, USA, you should not stop eating all sugar.
If you enjoy them by all means have them, but keep your expectations realistic. "Superfoods" like blueberries, green tea, garlic, etc. are great for your health but they do not fight cancer according to a study funded by Cancer Research UK.
Have you heard that wearing a bra could increase your risk of cancer? No need to worry, the National Cancer Institute and the American Cancer Institute have categorically refuted this outrageous claim.
Dyeing your hair causes cancer? According to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association on May 25, 2014 this is untrue.
Willing to cut out BBQ forever for fear of developing cancer? Don't give away your grill just yet. While charred meat contains substances found to cause mutation in rodents, the levels necessary to cause cancer in humans would require outrageously high amount of bbq that no one would normally eat. To cut down your risk the National Cancer Institute advises you don't char your food, or if you do, cut those bits off.
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