James Martin ‘lost four mates to heart attacks and cancer’ – prevention tips

James Martin tells Phillip Schofield ‘don’t bring me into this’

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In a candid interview with Event Magazine, the TV cook revealed how tragedies close to him had sparked a new way of living. “I lost three or four mates to heart attacks and cancer,” he disclosed. “You say, ‘Woah!’. You spend your entire life at work, work, work, with no time for yourself and the people around you. So I made a decision to look at the way I lived my life.”

Featuring in an interview with MailOnline since, James said: “You’ve got one shot at life here.”

How to minimise your risk of cancer

The World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) has identified seven factors that could minimise your risk of cancer.

There recommendation are based on the “latest scientific evidence”.

For example, the WCRF advised to “limit consumption of fast foods and foods high in fat or sugar”.

“Limiting these foods helps control calorie intake and maintain a healthy weight,” it explained.

High calorie foods include:

  • Chocolate and sweets
  • Crisps
  • Biscuits
  • Cake
  • Ice cream
  • Fast food, like burgers, fried chicken or fries
  • Pastries

“Even small portions of these foods contain lots of calories and they are often low in the vital nutrients your body needs,” the WCRF said.

For those people who are slightly overweight, “losing even a few pounds will make a positive difference to your health”.

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Another dietary consideration to minimise cancer risk is to “limit the consumption of red and processed meat”.

“If you do eat red meat, cutting down can help protect against bowel cancer,” said the WCRF.

There is strong evidence red and processed meat can be “high in fat and salt”.

Thus, the less you eat of it, the better; people should eat no more than three portions of red meat per week.

It’s also a good idea to be mindful of the drinks you choose to consume.

“There is strong evidence that regularly drinking sugar-sweetened drinks can cause weight gain, which in turn can cause many cancers,” warned the WCRF.

The best beverage to minimise your risk of cancer? The answer is water.

However, other “good options” include unsweetened tea or coffee, and one glass of natural fruit juice within a day.

The WCRF said to “reduce your cancer risk as much as possible, we recommend not drinking alcohol at all”.

“If you do choose to drink alcohol, follow national guidelines,” it added.

The UK national guidelines suggest that people should drink no more than 14 units per week, spread over at least three days.

Cutting down on drinking alcohol will help to reduce your risk of “six types of cancers”.

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