Lifestyle factors behind 40pc of cancers
Lifestyle and environmental factors, such as diet, alcohol and obesity, are behind more than two-fifths of cancer diagnoses each year, a new study suggests.About one-third of cancers each year in the UK - more than 100,000 cases - are caused by smoking, unhealthy diets, alcohol and excess weight, the study found.
When all 14 lifestyle and environmental risk factors that were assessed in the study are taken into account, the figure rises to about 134,000.
The research also revealed that incorporating plenty of fruit and vegetables into diet plans can bring about a significant reduction in men's cancer risk.
Overall, Cancer Research UK scientists say that 45 per cent of cancers in men and 40 per cent in women could be prevented by modifying these risk factors.
Professor Max Parkin, who is based at Queen Mary, University of London, said: "Looking at all the evidence, it's clear that around 40 per cent of all cancers are caused by things we mostly have the power to change.
"We didn't expect to find that eating fruit and vegetables would prove to be so important in protecting men against cancer."
Commenting on the findings, which are published in the British Journal of Cancer, public health minister Anne Milton said that small lifestyle changes can cut people's risk of disease.
She advised consumers to give up smoking, watch their alcohol consumption, exercise and keep an eye on their weight.
