You can learn a lot from reading health and fitness success stories. Here's one that got my attention.

Nathan Ricks is a leading distributor at Pharmanex, a leader in the fitness and nutritional supplement industry. He sent out a copy of a message he had received from a friend about his bout with cancer.

Nathan appended his message with:

My sharing of this testimonial is not intended to suggest that supplements cure cancer of any kind but rather to show how he feels they helped him through his experience.

Here is what his friend wrote:

This is why I use LifePak (Pharmanex vitamin supplement), eat healthy, and exercise.

Although my main Oncologist says diet has nothing to do with cancer, Carol & I don't agree (along with Mayo clinic - click here for their view).

Here's the facts:

• I contracted NHL (non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma)

• I started a combined treatment (chemo--CHOP4+R & radiation)

• Began faithfully taking lots of supplements--including LifePak, IP-6, Reshi-Max, Aie10, etc

• Oncologist was surprised lymphoma was completely gone after only 2 treatments

• Continued treatments (1 more chemo and entire radiation series) & taking supplements recommended by Cancer Treatment Centers of America and Dr. Richard Becker (9 year Lymphoma survivor & and physician)

• Side effects were drastically reduced (extremely unusual)

• I was able to exercise during ALL treatments (30-60 min treadmill, stationary bike, ski machine, 3-4 times/wk)
   

• I only missed 4 days of work--three of which was to have chemo treatments, one to sleep after a week of insomnia (chemo side effect)

• I'm 5 months cancer free (just had CT scan & blood test--completely normal)
  * My immune system is stellar (according to blood tests)

Bottom Line: Appropriate Supplements, Diet, & exercise DOES beat AND prevent cancer.

-Ron

Here's some additional insights you can learn from such health and fitness success stories.

Perhaps you have seen the circulating email entitled: Cancer Update from John Hopkins. It talks about 16 different characteristics of cancer cells -- all of which suggest that proper diet and exercise will help ward off the dangers of cancer.

Well, as you might guess, this email is an Urban Legend reported in Snopes (please read the email thoroughly). I did go to the John Hopkins site and read their references. Mostly the comment was from a expert who said that the studies were contradictory and that there was no authoritative evidence that any of the email observations were correct.

Of course, the problem is that the studies on record were those started years ago and do not reflect emerging, common sense insights from anecdotal evidence which abounds. It makes sense that cancer would be found less in fully fit individuals. We know (through measurements) that cancer patients score very low in body antioxidant level. So, it makes sense that Ron's strategy would help in his battlel.

And consider this. In my paper today (The Post and Courier, June 3, 2007, p 6AA) there is an article headlined: "Studies find some value in alternative medicines/Ginseng, flaxseed might help cancer patients, but hark cartilage doesn't." The opening paragraph reads, "The first scientific tests of some popular alternative medicine products hint that American ginseng might lessen cancer fatigue and flaxseed might slow the growth of prostate tumors."

Debra Brown. a Mayo Clinic research nurse is quoted as saying, "Results are promising, but it is too soon to recommend that people use ginseng. A better idea is exercise -- the one treatment already show to help cancer fatigue." [emphasis added]

Perhaps the Urban Legend email writer would have had much more success had she referenced the Mayo Clinic rather than Johns Hopkins.

Please come back to this page as we add more health and fitness success stories.