Cancer is probably the most frightening of all diseases. It gets scarier as we get older as we accumulate a closer connection with the disease as more and more friends or even family members experience it. As it is responsible for one in four deaths and is the second leading cause of death in our modern world it seems unstoppable.

We can’t help but wonder if it will happen to us, and we could be forgiven for thinking that cancer is something that we have no control over. But would it help stop us worrying if we knew that 90% of all cancers are preventable and are linked to lifestyle – something that we all have total control over?

For the first time in the history of our species, the world faces an epidemic of overweight and obese people. We live in abundant times; food is plentiful so we tend to overeat. Profound social changes in developed countries in the last 100 years have led to more sedentary lifestyles and high calorie diets.

Research has revealed that there is a strong link between cancer and obesity. Many of us think that our fat bellies and love handles are just inert deposits of harmless body fat.

Even people that look thin may be fat on the inside having high levels of fat around their internal organs. This fat can be every bit as unhealthy and dangerous as the more obvious external bulges that hang and sag off our bodies.

It is now known that excess body fat doesn’t just sit there – it actively alters the body’s normal hormonal and chemical balances. Abdominal fat is especially dangerous being metabolically active, sending out chemicals like insulin and proteins that can urge cells to grow and divide at an accelerated rate. Higher levels of these chemicals make it easier for cancer to develop and gain a foothold.

The good news is that all excess body fat can be easily burned off through a proper exercise program. This will maintain body weight in the healthy range which in turn lowers the levels of circulating cancer-promoting hormones.

The exercise program to be truly effective and obtain cancer risk reduction must include at least 60% strength training exercise and the rest vigorous cardio exercise and must be challenging. Raising the heart rate into the correct training zone will speed the circulation of antibodies and killer cells through the body.

Strength training produces more health benefits and greatly reduces a number of health risks more than any other form of exercise and can reduce cancer risk by 40-50%.

For starters its main function is preserving lean muscle tissue which is crucially important to enable the immune system to function fully increasing the body’s ability to withstand disease.

The body has mechanisms in place to identify and destroy cancerous cells before they get out of control. The amino acid glutamine is the necessary fuel source used by many cells of the immune system and muscles are the primary site where this is stored. By having more lean muscle tissue available allows a bigger glutamine supply which boosts the systems ability to detect and kill cancerous cells before they get a foothold.

So you can see there is a simple solution to reducing the need to worry about contracting the most frightening killer of all – make it your number one health goal to get stronger and fitter and stay that way for the rest of your life.