Brain tumors kill more children and adults under 40 than any other type of cancer in the UK.
More than 12,000 Britons are diagnosed with the cancer each year, and only one in ten are expected to survive into the next decade.
But experts say a few lifestyle changes could help reduce your chances of contracting the disease.
Watching what you eat, how you sleep, and managing stress are just things that brain cancer specialists follow themselves in an effort to keep their gray matter in tip-top shape.
Here, Dr Sara Meade, consultant clinical neuro-oncologist at Harborne Hospital in Birmingham, part of HCA Healthcare, tells MailOnline the healthy habits she favors to keep her brain healthy.
Get outdoors and exercise
Making sure to include a family walk or a refreshing swim is always a top priority for Dr. Meade.
She believes that engaging in enjoyable activities that keep you fit and healthy is vital for your brain health.
“Every day I make it a point to do something I love for my physical and mental health,” she told this website.
“This could be going swimming, which is my favorite fitness and wellness pastime, going for a walk with my family, my dog or a friend, or even something as simple as getting out of the clinical area for 20 minutes. have coffee with a colleague.
“Engaging in activities that bring joy helps reduce stress and promotes a positive outlook on life. In turn, this helps maintain good physical and mental health.
Being active and at a healthy weight can strengthen your immune system, she says.
Keeping your immune system in tip-top shape can help you function better, as it helps spot and treat cells that could become cancerous, according to Cancer Research UK (CRUK).
The association also points out that being active reduces inflammation which, if left unchecked, can cause our cells to divide more frequently, increasing the risk of cancer.
“While there is no specific risk of brain cancer from not being active, it does apply to reducing the risk of all cancers in general,” Dr. Meade points out.
Benefit from a healthy and balanced diet
Eating plenty of healthy foods not only keeps your body fit and healthy, but also your mind.
“A healthy diet is the cornerstone of maintaining good health,” Dr. Meade said.
“I believe in moderation and making good food choices most of the time to maintain a healthy balance,” she added.
“A balanced diet helps us provide the nutrients needed for optimal body and brain function and promotes overall well-being.
“This habit ensures that I have the energy and focus I need in everyday life.”
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Oily fish is an important source of omega-3 fatty acids, which are essential for brain health.
Additionally, eating more fruits and vegetables and fewer fatty and sugary foods will help you maintain a healthy weight overall.
However, while a healthy, balanced diet can help reduce your risk of cancer, Dr. Meade said it’s unlikely that a single food can actually reduce your risk.
“There is no strong evidence that you need to eat anything in particular to avoid brain cancer. It’s all about eating well and maintaining a normal weight for good overall health,” said Dr. Dr. Meade.
According to CRUK, being overweight or obese increases the risk of 13 types of cancer, including meningioma (a type of brain tumor).
One reason for this is that being too fat causes a level Growth hormones in the body increase, which then causes cells to divide more frequently.
Each of these additional divisions represents another potential chance for cancer cells to appear, increasing the risk of contracting the disease.
Another factor increasing risk is that immune cells are attracted to areas of the body where there are many fat cells.
This can then cause a spike in inflammation in these areas which, as highlighted previously, causes cells to divide more quickly, increasing the risk of cancer formation.
Close your eyes sufficiently every night
A good dose of sleep can do wonders for our brain health.
“We all function better with a healthy sleep pattern,” Dr. Meade said.
“Although everyone’s sleep needs are slightly different when it comes to sleep duration, good quality sleep is crucial for a healthy mind and maintaining cognitive function.
“I prioritize getting enough sleep each night to ensure I am well rested and can perform at my best, both professionally and personally.”
A healthy adult should get around 7-9 hours of sleep a night, but age and health can change the amount of sleep we need, according to the NHS.
Long periods of poor sleep can have a negative impact on one’s mental wellbeing and also influence the choices they make.
In the short term, it can also make us feel depressed, more irritable with others, eat more, and have difficulty concentrating.
But in the long term, lack of sleep has also been associated with greater “wear and tear” on our cells.
This type of cellular disruption is thought to increase the risk of cancerous tumors.
A 2019 study found that people who work night shifts experience 30% more damage to their DNA than those who work regular hours.
In this study, researchers from the University of Hong Kong examined about 50 doctors from two local hospitals, half of whom had to work nights and slept only two to four hours. The others had seven or more.
Another study suggests that fragmented sleep may trigger types of inflammation that promote tumor growth and progression. But this 2014 study from the University of Chicago was done on mice, not humans.
But a 2021 study of people over the age of 50 found that there was a higher cancer risk among those who rated their sleep quality as “intermediate” or “poor.”
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However, Dr Meade said more research is needed to confirm whether a lack of good quality sleep can directly increase your risk of cancer.
But she added that making sure you get enough good quality sleep can’t hurt and those who don’t get enough shut-eye may also have other lifestyle factors, like poor diet, which could increase their risk of cancer.
She said: “Those with poor sleep hygiene can often be overweight, have a poor diet, have poor work habits, so these often all go hand in hand.
“This can lead to poor judgment and impaired decision-making. After a poor night’s sleep, you might rely on things you wouldn’t normally enjoy by making poor food choices.
Keep stress in balance
According to Dr. Meade, staying organized and maintaining a good work-life balance is essential to maintaining a healthy mind.
“Daily planning and prioritization is key to ensuring a healthy work-life balance,” she said.
“Every day I plan ahead to effectively manage my responsibilities. This habit helps me stay organized, reduce stress, and maintain a balance that supports my overall well-being.
“Everyone has different daily habits and routines that work for them, but it’s these habits that I find help improve my mental wellbeing. »
There is also evidence that improving your mental wellbeing and reducing stress could also reduce your risk of cancer.
A paper published in 2022 suggested that there may be a link between the body’s exposure to the stress hormone cortisol and cancer.
And another study in February this year suggested that stress causes cancers to grow and spread.
Although stress has not been directly linked to illness, long periods of stress have been linked to high blood pressure and depression, according to the NHS.
It may also be more difficult to maintain a healthy lifestyle, such as not smoking or drinking, during stressful situations. These habits can lead to an increased risk of cancer, CRUK warns.
However, the association says there is not enough evidence to show that “those who are more stressed are more likely to get cancer”.
While there’s no direct link, Dr. Meade says that managing your stress levels will, overall, help you have a better “quality of life.”
“It’s about giving yourself the best chance. Many of us cannot control whether or not we will get brain cancer in our lifetime,” she said.
“For the vast majority of people, there is nothing wrong that they have done in their life that could cause this cancer. Brain cancer is very often very random and sporadic. But it’s about giving yourself the best chance of longevity and quality of life.