Quick Look 👀

1 oz of water to garden your health

1 Trick/Tip that can save your life

2 Weeds to avoid

2 Websites to cultivate your garden

Random Musings

Reading Time: 7min 21 seconds

I haven’t written anything in ~8 months. Some excuses include being busy with work, competing in Olympic lifting competitions, and life.

The truth, though, is the lack of making time.

So here I am writing again. I find these newsletters energizing for me and aim to give the readers actionable info.

So let’s start where we left off.

This week’s newsletter is brought to you by the recent news headlines all over the news: “Alarming rise in cancer rates among people under 50”, and other variations.

What specific cancers should we be alarmed about? What can we do about it? Is it only in the United States?

So here’s to me delving into the information, giving you some worthwhile actionable items, and empowering you to live longer.

Action to water your health

The COVID-19 pandemic is still screwing us over to this day; healthcare services are still not fully functional. Despite the easing of restrictions, the provision of healthcare, including surgeries and medical procedures, has not fully rebounded due to continued disruptions and the long-term impacts of the pandemic.

As you can imagine, the delays in diagnosis and treatment led to an uptick in advanced-stage disease and mortality. We are still seeing the effects to this day.

This is not to say COVID-19 is all to blame. Overall cancer incidence rates reflect patterns in behaviors associated with cancer risk and changes in medical practice, such as the use of cancer screening tests.

Expected number of new cancer cases

Let's take a closer look at the expected number of new cancer cases in 2023:

1. In 2023, it's estimated there will be around 1,958,310 new invasive cancer cases in the U.S., or about 5,370 cases each day.

2. There will also be about 55,720 new cases of ductal carcinoma in situ in women, and 89,070 new cases of melanoma in situ of the skin.

3. The chance of being diagnosed with invasive cancer in a person's lifetime is slightly higher for men (40.9%) than for women (39.1%).

4. The higher risk in men is believed to be largely due to more exposure to carcinogenic environmental and behavioral factors, like smoking. Other factors like height, hormone exposure, and immune function may also play a role.

5. The most common cancers diagnosed in men in 2023 will be prostate, lung, and colorectal cancers, making up 48% of all cases. Prostate cancer alone will account for 29% of diagnoses.

6. For women, the most common cancers will be breast, lung, and colorectal cancers, making up 52% of all new diagnoses. Breast cancer alone will account for 31% of female cancer cases.

Cancer Trends

It’s worth looking at Table 2 of The American Cancer Society journal article and looking at the top cases for selected cancers by state, 2023.

Let’s look at California, for example,

The leading cancer for females was breast and for males was prostate with lung and bronchus cancer being the 3rd highest incidence.

Further, look into cancer trends.

• Female breast cancer rates have been rising about 0.5% per year since the mid-2000s, mainly due to localized and hormone receptor-positive diagnoses. This may be partly due to lower fertility rates and higher body weight.

• Uterine corpus cancer rates have also been increasing by about 1% per year since the mid-2000s in women aged 50 and older, and nearly 2% per year in younger women.

• Thyroid cancer rates, after years of increase, have been dropping about 2% per year since 2014 due to changes in clinical practice aimed at reducing over-detection.

• Despite higher incidence rates in women, thyroid tumor occurrence has remained stable since 1970 in both genders.

• Lung cancer rates have been decreasing steadily since 2006-2007, with a 2.6% annual drop in men and a 1.1% annual drop in women. This is slower in women due to later adoption and slower quitting of smoking.

• Colorectal cancer (CRC) incidence patterns have been similar in men and women since the mid-1970s, with a 1.4%-1.5% annual decline since 2012. However, rates have been increasing by almost 2% per year in adults younger than 50, likely due to lifestyle changes.

How Race Matters

Yes, there are disparities by race and ethnicity. This is not new, but it's important to remind ourselves of them.

• The highest mortality rate for both sexes is among AIAN (American Indian/Alaska Native) people, followed closely by Black people.

• The Black-White disparity in cancer mortality has declined from 33% in 1993 to 12% in 2020, largely driven by reduced smoking-related cancers.

• Racial disparities in cancer are largely due to less access to high-quality care but also persist due to longstanding wealth inequalities and structural racism.

• Even among higher-income individuals, Black people have lower 5-year cancer survival rates than White people.

• Black children are 24% more likely to be diagnosed with distant-stage disease than white children, regardless of family insurance status.

• The disproportionate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on people of color in the U.S. is a recent example of how social determinants of health contribute to health disparities.

• Routine health care like mammography screening has been slower to rebound among people of color following suspensions early in the pandemic.

Estimated New Cases vs Estimated Deaths

Take a moment to look at this figure. Although pancreatic cancer cases are relatively low, they still rank 4th in estimated deaths.

This shows you that:

⇧ New Cancer Rates [for x cancer] ≠ ⇧ Estimated Deaths

Preventable Risk Factors:

The BMJ journal noted dietary risk factors (diet high in red meat, low in fruits, high in sodium, low in milk, etc.), alcohol consumption, and tobacco use are the main risk factors underlying early-onset cancers.

Main being the key.

I wrote about possible endocrine disruptors in Vol. 39, and microplastics in Vol. 33. I know they have at least minor risks for cancer but don’t know the degree until the literature catches up.

Action:

1. Modify Diet: Opt for a balanced diet that is high in fruits and vegetables, low in red meat, and includes appropriate levels of sodium and milk.

2. Limit Alcohol Consumption: Try to reduce the amount of alcohol you drink or abstain completely.

3. Quit Tobacco: Stop using tobacco products, including cigarettes and chewing tobacco.

4. Regular Exercise: Engage in regular physical activity to maintain a healthy weight.

5. Regular Check-ups: Regular medical check-ups can help detect early signs of cancer.

6. Avoid Exposure to Known Carcinogens: Limit exposure to environmental factors known to increase cancer risk, such as certain chemicals and excessive sun.

7. Vaccination: Get vaccinated against certain infections known to increase cancer risk, such as HPV and Hepatitis B.

8. Regular Screenings: Participate in appropriate cancer screenings, which can help detect cancer early when it's most treatable.

Yes, it’s that simple the majority of the time. Yes, genetics, environmental factors, and other variants sometimes screw us over regardless of how much we do these things.

So stop ignoring that check-up, weird rash, lab test, etc., that you put off. Add it to your to-dos.

I'll wait….

Read up:

1. American Cancer Society. Cancer Facts & Figures 2020. CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians. 2020;70(1):7-30. Available from: https://acsjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.3322/caac.21763. Accessed January 19, 2024.

2. BMJ Oncology “Global trends in incidence, death, burden and risk factors of early-onset cancer from 1990 to 2019”

Trick/Tip that can save your life

Mold can cause a lot of respiratory illnesses and could be the cause of yours, maybe…if you’ve ruled out other things.

Mold: Molds, a type of fungus and microorganism, are ubiquitous in both outdoor and indoor environments, thriving in damp areas.

Daily contact with molds occurs through the air we breathe or through household activities. While most mold species are harmless and even beneficial in food or medicine production, some can produce harmful mycotoxins.

Mold and mildew, both fungi requiring moisture, differ with mildew being powdery and surface-living, while mold appears fuzzy, thick, and typically greenish or black.

Health Effects of Mold:

• Exposure can lead to respiratory problems, such as shortness of breath and worsening asthma, as confirmed by The World Health Organization, National Academy of Medicine, and National Toxicology Program (NTP).

• Exposure to mold and dampness indoors increases the risk of developing asthma in young children and worsens asthma in individuals who already have the disease.

• Exposure to Aspergillus fumigatus, a common mold, may cause fungal asthma resulting in airway obstruction caused by mucus overproduction.

• Infants living in moldy homes have a higher likelihood of developing asthma by age 7.

• Allergic reactions to molds are common and can include symptoms such as runny nose, sneezing, coughing, wheezing, eye irritation, sore throat, congestion, skin rash, and headaches.

• Long-term exposure to mycotoxins can cause inflammation and immune system changes. Aflatoxins, a type of mycotoxin found on grain, seed, or nut crops, are listed as a human carcinogen by the NTP and are linked with an increased risk of liver cancer.

What to do:

Weeds to avoid

1. Don’t fall for The Sunk Cost Fallacy. It’s never to late to turn around and walk the other road. Really…do it.

2. Enjoy the journey…seriously. It’s ok, you can celebrate the small wins. I won’t tell.

Websites to Cultivate Your Garden

MindOS: Wow! This has an AI built into your note-taking ideas. It was a bit overwhelming for me but its fairly novel in its layout. Take it for a spin.

Earth.fm: Do you live in a loud ass city? Check it out, noise pollution affects your health. You can read more from Harvard.

• Mental health symptoms like anxiety, stress, fatigue, and headache

• Cognitive impairment and decline

• “Heart attacks, strokes, and other serious heart-related problems”.

Random Musings

1. Started drinking bone broth, made from scratch. It’s so soothing, has high protein, good for joints/skin, and more. Read Vol. 015 for in-depth look into collagen and how not to get scammed.

2. Travel someplace warm if you live in the cold. It makes a huge difference.

3. I’ve been drinking Hiyo and dam it tastes good. If you’ve been looking for non-alcoholic drinks, give it a shot.

4. It feels good to start writing again, it gives me energy and makes me do quality research on the topics.

You're an awesome human

Martin, CEO of Sunday Brain Boost

Stuff I use

Hiyo: Non-alcoholic drink that taste refreshing, good, and worth the hype. Use this link to get $10 off.

Toms Perfect 10: Granola, I’ve tried and made dozens of different types. If you want crazy, flavorful granola try this.

EarthFedMuscle: It’s no exaggeration to say I’ve tried hundreds of protein powders. This is one of the most flavorful proteins with clean ingredients.

Tana: My go to notetaking app. I can explain why but try it yourself.

Virus: Quality-made workout clothes for any occasion.

2pood: Their weightlifting belt is one of my favorites. With tons of designs, sturdy and I feel like it’s not going to fall apart.

Magic Mind: I typically take this shot after my morning coffee. Has matcha, lion’s mane mushrooms, bacopa monnieri, turmeric curcumin, and other nootropics. Read more about nootropics and adaptogens in Vol. 36

Stuff I created, that you might find helpful.