"20 Ways to Prevent Cancer" MEME

Came across this article about cancer prevention today, and thought it might be fun to turn it into a "meme". I've listed each tip and responded with GOOD/NEUTRAL/BAD about how I'm doing on that point, and a brief description of what I do. At the end, there are 2 questions to sum up the meme.

Feel free to participate, for your own little health check-up:

1. Filter your tap water- GOOD "normally", BAD here. We used bottled water when we live overseas, but while visiting here in the US, we're tap water folks.
2. Stop topping off your gas tank- GOOD. I rarely fill up the car with gas, and when I do, we just go to the top and that's the end of it.
3. Marinate meat before grilling- GOOD. I almost always marinate before any kind of cooking.
4. Caffeinate every day- BAD. This one was surprising. I rarely drink caffeine in any form.
5. Drink more than 8 cups of water daily- GOOD. Nine years of pregnancy and nursing have drilled that habit into me. I am a water guzzler.
6. Load up on really green greens- BAD. I ate broccoli tonight, but before tonight, it'd been weeks since I'd had really dark greens.
7. Snack on brazil nuts- BAD. Never tried em.
8. Exercise regularly to avoid breast cancer- BAD, but GETTING BETTER. I'm still not where I want to be, but I'm exercising more lately than I have in years.
9. Skip the dry cleaner- GOOD. It's been more than 9 years since I've taken anything to the cleaners. We're wash-and-wear people.
10. Ask your doc about breast density- NEUTRAL. I'm not to the age for mammograms yet, but I have not asked about and do not know about breast density.
11. Limit cell phone usage near the head- GOOD. Although this tip is inconclusive, it really doesn't matter because I don't use cell phones often anyhow. I'm home so much, that anywhere we live, we just keep one cell phone and one house phone. I probably talk on a cell phone less than once a day.
12. Block skin cancer with colors & hats- NEUTRAL. I do wear a lot of colors, and I'm pretty good about wearing sunscreen or hats when I go out in the sun. But I don't choose colors based on which ones block the sun at greater proportions.
13. Pic a doc with a past for accurate interpretation of mammogram results- NEUTRAL. Again, I'm not yet to the age for mammograms.
14. Eat clean foods- GOOD. We're better at this when overseas, as the produce and meats in Turkey are still produced (mostly) ethically and locally.
15. Read food labels for folic acid- BAD. I don't check for that, and wasn't aware that synthetic folic acid can be harmful to the colon.
16. Up your calcium intake- GOOD. I drink a fair amount of milk normally, and cheese makes up a ridiculously large amount of my diet while here in the US. :)
17. Commit to whole grains- BAD. I need to change this. I enjoy whole grains when I think of it, but I don't always reach for it, and don't have a "commitment" to it. I'd like for that to change.
18. Pay attention to pain- NEUTRAL. This is one I need to remember. When I experience pain, I tend to downplay it and push through.
19. Avoid unnecessary scans- GOOD. I haven't had any CT, MRI type scans. I had x-rays when I was a teenager, for dental work, but don't recall any in the last 15 years.
20. Drop 10 pounds.- GOOD. I have already dropped 3, and am committed to my plan with Weight Watchers.

SO, HOW AM I DOING OVERALL? Good: 10, Neutral: 4, Bad: 6

WHAT ONE CHANGE DO I INTEND TO FOCUS ON & IMPLEMENT? Committing to whole grains.

This was a productive meme for me, and I feel even more resolved to work to make healthy choices after completing it.

Feel free to participate! Here's a linky where you can leave a link to your blog: