100 Perks of Having Cancer: Plus 100 Health Tips for Surviving It (79 page)

my first half marathon. During my training, my running shoes fast became

my best friends. While shoes usually last for about 400 to 500 miles of use,

I’ll know that my shoes are “getting old” when my legs start to feel tired

and sore. Joe also explained that you should wear your walking or running

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shoes only for the activity for which they were designed. Wearing walking

shoes for tennis playing, for example, is not only dangerous, and might

put you at risk for injury, but it will also wear your shoes out much faster.

Joe also stressed the importance of proper nutrition and hydration.

While important for overall health, Joe explained that running on an empty

tank or when you’re dehydrated causes you to become easily fatigued and

that causes your stride to change, putting you at risk for injuries even if you

have the perfect shoes. (Smart guy, eh?)

While you may not be as lucky as I was to find a “Joe,”

the salesperson that helps you should be knowledgeable

To prevent injuries and

and experienced. (Compare Joe with the nineteen-year-old

maximize your exercise

part-timer that helped my daughter find running shoes. She

experience, put your

came home with a shoe too small that had a price tag too

right foot forward . . .

big and ended up cluttering the bottom of her closet instead

in the right shoe!

of helping her with her fitness.)

If you are unable to be fitted, or would rather fit your-

self, that’s fine. Just make sure you follow the guidelines for proper fit. You’ll

know the right shoe when you put it on and try it out. You should never

have to “work in” an exercise shoe. It should be comfortable from day one.

When you’ve found the right shoe, start exercising and never stop!

For more information on buying a running shoe, check out www.the

runningadvisor.com/running_shoes.html. For more information on buying

walking shoes, visit www.mayoclinic/health/walking/HQ00885_D.

Perk #79

Eat Pray Love

E
lizabeth Gilbert was on to something when she wrote the bestselling

book
Eat, Pray, Love.
After my diagnosis, I more fully and consciously

embraced these three things, and, ironically, despite having cancer, I’d never

experienced a stronger feeling of well-being in all of my life! I have since

made it my commitment to eat, pray, and love my way to a healthier and

happier me.

Eat:
Since I got serious about my cancer-fighting diet, not even a piece

of gum will sneak past my lips unless it is sugar-free. Apparently, cancer

LOVES sugar, and I have no intention of feeding the enemy. My diet is now

mainly plant based, with lots of “living foods” like sprouts and fresh spinach.

I am amazed at the connection between what I eat and how I feel. Even my

old companion, irritable bowel syndrome, has completely disappeared.

Pray:
Since my diagnosis, I continue to make prayer and meditation a

focus of each day. This is not just based on “blind faith” but also on scientific

evidence that proves the power of prayer and meditation in promoting good

health and overall well-being. In
Love, Medicine and Miracles,
bestselling

author Dr. Bernie Siegel strongly advocates meditation for cancer patients,

saying, “I know of no other single activity that by itself can produce such

great improvement in the quality of life.” Works for me!

Love:
Ah, love. The first thing that probably comes to mind is the but-

terflies and rainbows feeling of falling in love. I was very fortunate to expe-

rience that type of love at about the same time that I was diagnosed with

cancer. What a wonderful gift! I believe that the feeling of love creates a

healing vibration in the body. However, through my cancer journey, I have

come to discover that the true gift of love is only possible if you first love

yourself. If you are harboring any resentment or ill feeling, especially toward

yourself, forgive and let it go. Realize that you ARE love, and allow yourself

to experience the healing vibration of this wonderful feeling.

I 333 J

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100 Perks of Having Cancer

Eat, Pray, and Love your way

to a healthy and happy life.

HEALTH TIP #79

Eat, Pray, Love . . . but First Wash Your Hands

T
he average person washes their hands more than eight times a day. That

said, it would behoove you (yes, I said
behoove
) to make sure your hand

soap does not contain unhealthy chemicals. And you can’t go by the labels,

unfortunately, because the word
natural
is being overused and abused more

than the word
awesome
these days.

Case in point: A “well-known” brand of hand soap sold in a major chain

store across the United States and Canada labels this hand soap on the front

of its packaging as “naturally derived.” Here is a list of the ingredients. You

be the judge.

●
water (so far, so good)

●
sodium laurel sulphate (not exactly from nature, but okay)

●
cocomide DEA (while it starts out as coconuts, it is mixed with chemicals

and ends up as a possible carcinogen and irritant)

●
cocamidopropyl betane (known skin irritant)

●
glycerine (fine)

●
aloe vera gel (hey! Something naturally derived!)

●
vitamin E (fine)

●
citric acid (from citrus fruits, fine)

●
sodium chloride (salt, okay)

●
benzophenone 4 (a chemical that causes a high degree of dermatitis when

tested)

Perk #79: Eat Pray Love

335

●
sodium citrate (fine)

●
methylisothiazolinone/methylchoroisothiazolinone (
hmm

. . . the

EPA lists this as a registered pesticide for industrial use. Listed under

the heading “Prevention, pesticides, and toxic substances,” it is used to

prevent mold and bacteria on heavy equipment, cooling systems, paints,

dip tanks, and sprayers. The safety recommendations state “users should

wash hands before eating, drinking, chewing gum, using tobacco, or using

the toilet.”

Let me get this straight: You have to wash this stuff OFF your hands

before
using the toilet?

And are they using this hand soap containing this very chemical to wash

said chemical off their hands?
That’s
not gonna work.

I’m confused. And we’ve still got three more ingredients to go.

●
parfum (fragrance that can hide up to fifty different chemicals including

cancer-causing 1,4 dioxane)

●
yellow #5 (this artificial color also known as tatrazine, was associated

with hyperactivity in children and removed from the UK safe list)

●
green #5 cl 61570 (not exactly from green plants, now, is it?)

Well, at least the bottle is made from 100 percent recycled plastic.

No, you’re not
eating
this stuff, but remember: Your skin is a carrier, not

a barrier, and if you’re using it (or something worse) up to eight times a

day washing your hands, it’s likely these chemicals are being absorbed into

your system.

Don’t be fooled by words like
naturally derived
or
contains natural ingre-

dients
, as in this case, only five out of the sixteen ingredients could (with

imagination) be considered “natural.”

Better, safer, healthier choices are out there. One is castile soap. Made

from plant oils instead of beef fat, lye, or a colorful collection of chemicals,

castile soap is safe, natural, and very effective in cleaning. Found in most

supermarkets and pharmacies, it is available in bar and liquid form. Essen-

tial oils (from plants, as opposed to synthetic fragrance oils) are sometimes

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100 Perks of Having Cancer

added for a wonderfully aromatic experience. One brand of castile hand

soap that I love is Dr. Bronners (www.drbronner.com). A family-owned

company that practices fair trade and good energy, the Bronners have been

making castile soap for over 150 years. The story of the founder, Emil (Dr.)

Bronner, is fascinating as he really was way ahead of his time and overcame

great adversity to make a product he believed in. If good energy and pure

values have anything to do with good soap, this is the best soap in the

history of soap. Their hand soaps and body washes are wonderful, and

they also sell large refill containers, so you can save on the packaging.

Clean up your act and make the switch to a healthier

soap. It’s probably the easiest and least painful thing

you can do to reduce your chemical exposure.