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Healthy Eating and Active Living Research Highlights

Obesity, lack of physical activity, and poor diet are major risk factors for cancer – second only to tobacco use.

According to Cancer Facts and Figures 2025, almost 19% of cancer cases and 17% of cancer deaths are related to the combined effects of excess body weight, alcohol consumption, physical inactivity, and unhealthy diet, and thus have the potential to be prevented. 

The American Cancer Society (ACS) has recommendations for individual choices and for community action to make it easier for everyone to choose healthy behaviors.

A Healthy Diet and Physical Activity Can Help Reduce Your Cancer Risk 

For Cancer Prevention: American Cancer Guideline for Diet and Physical Activity 

For Cancer Survivors: American Cancer Society Nutrition and Physical Activity Guideline

Stats Don't Lie. You can eat and move your way to better health.

Follow the ACS Guideline for Diet and Physical Activity. Here are 2 reasons why:

10% to 20%

how much less likely guideline followers are to be diagnosed with cancer

25%

how much less likely guideline followers are to die from cancer

Statistics are from Cancer Facts & Figures, 2025

Exercise May Help Ease Pain for Cancer Survivors

Good news! This study using data from the ACS CPS-II Nutrition Cohort found that people with a history of cancer had less pain when they exercised the recommended amount and that the benefits may endure even after a period of inactivity.

Active Living Studies

45 Min/Day of Physical Activity May Help Prevent Some Cancers

ACS researchers estimate 5 hours/week of moderate-intensity physical activity could prevent more than 46,000+ cases of cancer in the US a year.

Being More Active and Sitting Less Can Improve Quality of Life for Older Adults, Including Cancer Survivors

See how Erika Rees-Punia, a researcher with ACS, used data from the ACS Cancer Prevention Study-II to study the effect of exercises on cancer survivors.

Adults May Benefit from Fewer than 10K Steps a Day

Study: Up to age 59, the risk of dying decreases as number of steps increase, up to 8K-10K steps/day. After age 60, benefits level off at 6K-8K steps/day.

The Numbers Show . . . More Americans Need to Get Moving

150

recommended minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity for adults to do each week 

48%

adults who report meeting recommended levels of aerobic activity

60

recommended minutes of daily activity for high school students 

24%

high school students who report meeting the recommended levels of activity

Statistics are from Cancer Facts & Figures, 2025

Nutrition Studies

How Caff and Decaf Coffee Affect the Risk for Colorectal Cancer

CPS-II Nutrition Cohort Study shows people who drink decaffeinated coffee have a lower risk of colorectal cancer, regardless of their smoking status.

Keto Molecule May Help Prevent and Treat Colorectal Cancer

When mice in the lab are on low-carb diets, like the keto diet many people follow, the liver makes a ketone that slows the growth of colorectal cancer. 

Studying the Influence of Better Diet After Diagnosis for Colorectal Cancer

Mark Guinter, PhD, MPH, a former researcher at the American Cancer Society, used the ACS Cancer Prevention Study-2 (CPS-2) to study if eating more healthfully after a diagnosis of colorectal cancer made any difference to longevity.

Body Weight Studies

Replacing 30 Min. of Sitting with Activity or Sleep May Affect Weight

CPS-3 Accelerometry data showed how replacing 30 minutes of the day's sedentary time with other behaviors can affect weight.

Can Ozempic & Mounjaro Reduce the Risk of Colorectal Cancer?

Early study finds GLP-1 medicines reduce the risk of colorectal cancer more than other diabetes medicines, especially for people with overweight/obesity.

Sobering Facts about US Body Weight 

74%

the prevalence of excess body weight in adults age 20 and older

37%

the prevalence of excess body weight in youth, ages 2 to 19

53%

the proportion of endometrial cancer cases—and deaths—attributed to excess body weight

Statistics are from Cancer Facts & Figures, 2025

Metabolite Studies

21 Metabolites May Be Linked with Postmenopausal Breast Cancer

Using blood samples collected from CPS-II Nutrition substudy participants, researchers identified new metabolites that may affect the risk of breast cancer.

Researchers Ask What People Eat—and Check Urine Samples

A study led by Ying Wang, PhD, in the journal Metabolites identified 513 unique metabolites correlated with 79 food groups/items. Learn more.

Exploring How Food Choices Influence the Risk for Colon Cancer

Paulette Chandler, MD, MPH, an American Cancer Society research grantee, is looking for the unique "fingerprint" of metabolites that link them to either a Western or to a Mediterranean diet.

Disparity Studies

Improving Availability of Healthy Food Reduces Cancer Inequities

Dietician and researcher urges policymakers to help build healthy food environments to reduce cancer cases in under-resourced areas.

Are There Racial Differences in How Physical Activity Affects Breast Cancer Survival?

Cher Dallal, PhD, an American Cancer Society research grantee, studies Black and White postmenopausal women who have survived breast cancer to see how exercise affects their on-going survival.

HEAL Research News

ACS Pivotal Studies

ACS Professor News

Help us end cancer as we know it, for everyone.

 
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