To think the PoW’s diagnosis makes healthy living seem pointless?

[Notsuretoputit]

I try my best to live heathily (although definitely not fanatical). I try and stay away from ultra processed foods, try and avoid saturated fat, too much meat etc., try and exercise every week. I’ll have the odd takeaway and definitely overindulge on wine, but always try and be mindful of living heathily because so much information is constantly battering me through the radio, media etc. about getting ill from various foods and not exercising.

I’ve recently lost my mother far too young too, so I suppose it’s particularly on my mind at the moment. But then you hear Kate’s diagnosis, who obviously exercises regularly, has the best instructors, best food, best ingredients, best preparation, and she still falls ill, and it all seems a bit pointless.

AIBU to feel this way? I just wonder whether I really should make an effort to watch what I eat and run when I don’t feel like it if really, what will be will be regardless.

I don't try to stay healthy to stave off cancer; I do it to have a healthy old age. However, I do have an parent with dementia, who kept fit and healthy. I'd rather die of a heart attack than have a mind deceased and a body that just won't die, because it's been too well looked after.

I couldn’t agree with you more!

dementia is very prevalent in my family, all living into their 90’s , needing 24 hour care, no dignity, no capacity…

I’d rather die younger with a physical condition

This is a bit silly isnt it OP- you gonna take up smoking now then?

A healthy lifestyle isnt only about cancer prevention. What about chronic life limiting conditions such as type 2 diabetes and COPD?- what kind of quality of life do you think someone with chronic COPD has, gasping for breath just going upstairs. Do you think the news that some apparently healthy people get cancer is going to be much comfort to you when you're wheezing and in pain

It’s extremely upsetting to see someone so young diagnosed. However as others have said we don’t know how ‘healthy’ her lifestyle really is - she’s extremely thin, yes some people are naturally skinny, but she’s thinner in her 30/40s than she was in her 20s and could be overexercising or under eating to keep that way. I certainly wouldn’t want the pressure of being constantly photographed and picked apart, it’s what she signed up for, but it must be tough.

You seem to be not every clued up @Notsuretoputit on some diseases.

People can be born with autoimmune conditions (eg coeliac) which could predispose them to certain cancers. Likewise things like inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are not simply connected to living healthily but, in rare cases, can lead to cancerous changes.

I think the stats are that around 40% of cancer is related to lifestyle choices.
The rest are just bad luck. Like my DP who has incurable cancer (found by change- so symptoms) despite an incredibly healthy lifestyle and none of the risks for his disease.

*change=chance, and no symptoms

Oooh another 'victim blaming' post.
Maybe consider the loss of weight was related to an underlying health condition?
Which in some cases can lead to cancerous changes?

There is NO guarantee against any illness. None.

All you can do is be as healthy as you can. It may help to ward off developing a serious illness, it would certainly help in the event of actually having an illness, and generally life is more enjoyable if you are healthy.

Genetics plays a huge part - but is not the whole story.
My maternal GM died of breast cancer. My mum was convinced and paranoid that she'd do the same, but died of pneumonia after 30 years on kidney dialysis.

I’d rather die younger with a physical condition

Dementia IS a physical condition.
It's a deterioration of the brain.

And almost half the cases can be prevented by exercise and eating healthily (and not smoking.)

I feel throwing hormones at your body - pill, coil, etc...can create health problems. Have seen several young friends diagnosed with cancer and have been on hormone rubbish since they were teens.

Yes thought it was just me who was getting sick of these victim blaming posts. The woman has just been diagnosed with cancer at the age of 42. And people are saying that she’s a smoker/she’s too thin/she eats crap. It’s so distasteful.

I understand this exact frustration. I don't think it's pointless, looking at wider statistics (e.g. cardiac risk etc) but on a personal level it's disappointing. This isn't even in relation to Kate, as we know nothing about her health, although agree she seems healthy.

Smoking causes cancer, so no, I’m not going to take it up.

But should I stop buying sourdough bread with only a few natural ingredients, or should I just buy the Warburtons white sliced that I actually like more? Should I have just made the stir fry I ate, or should I have the fish finger sandwich with cheese that I would prefer? Should I have chosen the turkey when I went out for Sunday dinner or got the pork belly I’d have preferred? Keep choosing chicken breast when I want the leg with skin? Should I keep running every week when I don’t enjoy it and it’s a chore, or just do the Pilates I enjoy?

I’m not going to start smoking because it causes cancer. But is trying to avoid cheese, red meat etc. really going to prevent the heart disease I’ve worried about since my mother died, or is it going to happen anyway and I may as well enjoy what I want?

Well it's a numbers game isn't it. A percentage of the cause is lifestyle and a percentage is genetic. If you take out the lifestyle risks you decrease your chances of getting cancer, you don't eliminate it.

20 years ago bowel cancer (for example) was much more likely in someone who was obese and unfit, who ate processed red meat - smoked bacon and sausages - and didn’t exercise. Anecdotally (I’m sure there are peer reviewed studies, but as it’s not my area of expertise I’ll say what I’ve heard) marathon running vegans under 40 are now being diagnosed and the medics are struggling to understand why. So, on some level I agree, it’s not pointless, but it doesn’t make you immune. But what a healthy lifestyle will offer is increased chance of coping with the recovery from surgery and the side effects of chemotherapy neither of which should be underestimated. So I suppose you’re not leading a heathy lifestyle to prevent cancer, because lets face it none of us can, but to recover from it.

Yes. I get the impression that some people are desperate to think it is ALL to do with lifestyle and nothing to do with genetics. That way they can think "I do everything right. I'll live to a healthy old age. She must have done something wrong." Not true. Genetics plays a big part.

You can't guarantee that. My DM did everything right and her cholesterol levels didn't budge. They only changed with meds. DSis (younger than me, just turned 40) had hers checked last year and it's higher than average. Admittedly, we're none of us perfect with diet, but it's a risk that's there anyway. DM is now older than either of her parents were when they died thanks to statins and BP meds.

You can do everything 'right' but it doesn't mean that one mutation that leads to cancer won't occur, or that your body won't develop an autoimmune condition like MS.

I think yes and no, OP.

Yes, in that you will likely feel better, and have a happier life, and weather illnesses more comfortably, if you are living a fairly healthy life.

But realistically, we all die, and no amount of healthy living will stop that. In the end, we live maybe 50 years, maybe 80, and it's all the blink of an eye in the grand scheme of things. There is no way to get out of facing death and usually also a decline before that.

In light of that, I think being obsessive over "healthy living" isn't all that worthwhile, even if we knew it worked to extend life every time. We also have to enjoy the moment and take it for what it is. Going to the gym might be better than sitting around on mumsnet, but going for a walk with your kids is probably better than both.

My sister is the same age as Kate. She's on her second cancer diagnosis since the age of 28. This time, she's terminal with a max of 18 months to live. I say live your life and have fun within reason. You never know when your time will come, but there's no point wasting it either.

Where have you been for the last year or more @Notsuretoputit
Danger of ultra processed foods?

Are you genuinely confused or just passing away your day here?

Most people who are trying to live healthily, will say you should eat healthily for 85-90% of the time, and splurge on a treat now and then.

I'd suggest you do some in-depth reading on this.
There is no evidence cheese causes heart disease.
There's even no agreement on cholesterol figures.
Some science points to sugar and refined carbs as clogging the arteries through inflammation rather than animal fat being the issue.

If you want to monitor yourself, check your BP, get a cholesterol test (in case it's massively high), stay a healthy weight, eat healthily most of the time and have the odd treat.

I was diagnosed with leukaemia last year at 56. My parents lived into their 90s and I hoped to benefit from their genetics (my dad was even a smoker for 50 years!). I’ve never had previous health issues and live a healthy lifestyle. My oncologist basically said they can’t see what caused it, but menopause can trigger these ‘events’ and suggested I eliminate stress (I have raised two disabled children while working full time for years, so I just retired).
I really feel for the Princess because it’s been such a stressful few years for the Royal Family. Most of us couldn’t handle the stress and scrutiny.

I get the way you feel.
I call her "the fittest lady in the UK".
Now, what chance do I have, being me?
And absolutely not "unfit".
Get you, OP! 😁

All you can do is mitigate the risk, but you’ll never eliminate it. Eating healthily and exercising reduces your risk
of many diseases and also improves your quality of life. When I was overweight I felt terrible; sick and lethargic. Everything ached. Now I’ve lost weight and exercise I feel so
much better and my general mood has improved hugely.

Hmmm..... hopefully...

Interesting point of view.
Child free here.