This time of year can get crazy, and many of us get through it by telling ourselves that we’ll start taking better care of our health — AFTER the holidays are over.

“I’ll run a marathon!”  ”I’ll head to the gym every morning!”  ”I’ll bike to work!”

All laudable goals, to be sure.  But one speaker at our Research Conference argued that such sudden, sweeping changes are tough to make permanent, and only set us up for failure.

We wrote about him, and his preferred approach to getting more activity, lowering weight — and lowering cancer risk — in this month’s AICR eNews.

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According to a new report published in the journal Cancer, the number of deaths in the United States from colon cancer could drop significantly in the next decade due to improved screening and treatment.  In the past 10 years, the death rate has dropped 20% according to the report.  By 2020, the researchers predict, the death rate will be one half of what it was in 2000.

This is good news, but colon cancer is one of the most preventable cancers according to David  S. Alberts, MD .  Diet and physical activity play an important role in lowering cancer risk and Dr. Alberts believes this is a message everyone should hear.

AICR’s expert report showed convincing evidence that consumption of processed meat, high amounts of red meat, body fatness and alcohol are causes of colorectal cancer.   Physical activity was shown convincingly to reduce risk of colon cancer.  Foods containing fiber and certain vegetables may also decrease risk for colorectal cancer.

AICR recommends that Americans focus on incorporating healthy habits to lower their risk for developing cancer.  Eating a mostly plant-based diet, limiting red meat to less than 18 oz per week, exercising at least 30 minutes daily and maintaining a healthy weight are ways to reduce risk for cancer as well as other chronic diseases.

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Could more exercise make you smarter?  Yes, according to a large population study that showed a positive association between cardiovascular fitness and cognitive performance.

The authors looked at information from more than 1 million men from Sweden born between 1950 and 1976.  They analyzed the physical activity and intelligence measures in these men at age 15 and again at age 18.   Improved cardiovascular fitness at age 18 was associated with improvements in logical, verbal and other aspects of intelligence.

These results held even after adjusting for genetics and shared environment.  The authors caution that since only men were included in the study, the results might not be applicable to women.

So, whether you want to get better grades, wow your boss, or just feel better, AICR has some ideas to help you start and maintain your physical activity this holiday season.

Check out these creative ideas from AICR’s December E-news articles:

Twelve Days of Holiday Fitness

Sweat the Small Stuff

AICR’s expert panel found convincing evidence that physical activity decreases risk for colon cancer, probably decreases risk for post menopausal breast cancer and cancer of the endometrium.  Check our earlier blog postings from the AICR Research Conference on physical activity – how it impacts cancer prevention and survival and how we can improve our sedentary habits.

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This beautiful picture of a translucent sea cucumber — released last week by the Census of Marine Life and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution – reminded me of some interesting research presented at AICR’s conference.

The lab research, presented in a poster session, found that a compound in sea cucumber decreased the growth of breast cancer tumors in mice and decreased cancer growth in cells. Previous lab studies have found that this same sea cucumber compound  — called Frondoside A – inhibited the growth of human pancreatic cancer cells.

The research is still only in the laboratory phase but if you want to try a new seafood, look for dried sea cucumbers in Asian markets.  (Sea cucumber are a common delicacy in many Asian dishes.)

Sea cucumbers are pretty fascinating. They are generally cucumber-shaped and there’s over 1,000 different species of them. To escape predators, sea cucumbers can jettison some of their internal organs, and then grow them back again.

You can see more newly-identified deep-sea organisms here.

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Dr. June Stevens is the American Institute for Cancer Research/World Cancer Research Fund Distinguished Professor at the AICR/WCRF Institute for the Advanced Study of Diet, Nutrition and Cancer at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  She oversees AICR’s Marilyn Gentry Fellowship Program, which seeks to develop tomorrow’s leaders in nutrition-cancer research.

Last week, she chaired a session at the 2009 AICR Research Conference called, “From Policy to Action in Cancer Prevention.” We caught up with her at lunch to ask her about the session, and about the research that’s revealing how best to translate the findings from laboratory studies and clinical trials into practical, actionable advice for the public.

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Dietitian Alice Bender‘s job here at AICR is to take the research we fund and turn it into practical advice for the public.  Last week was the first time Alice attended an AICR Research Conference.  She attended sessions, blogged a bit, hosted one of the roundtable discussions which were created to help the health professionals who attended our conference network with one another, and anchored our press conference, where she released the results of AICR’s biennial survey on cancer risk factors.

Now that the conference is behind us and things are starting to settle down, we were eager to get her impressions.

Q: What was the most exciting part of the conference for you?

A: Finishing the press conference (laughs)– because once it was over I could really  focus on the research that was being presented.  Actually, there were many highlights – the first one was dinner with [AICR Nutrition Advisor] Karen Collins and Diana Dyer [a cancer survivor/RD and longtime friend of AICR; sales of Diana's book go towards an special endowment at AICR for research on cancer survivorship.]  It was an exhilarating conversation that stretched to four hours before we knew it — we talked about all kinds of things related to nutrition, organics, sustainability and AICR.

Q: This was your first AICR conference. How’d it compare to what you expected?

A: It was even better than thought it would be. I knew there were going to be many presentation on basic research, but I was surprised — pleasantly so — to see the talks including so much applied information.  It was a nice mix of the science and its real-world implications.

After the jump: Alice talks networking, messaging and new technologies. (more…)

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Every issue of AICR’s biweekly e-publication, Cancer Research Update, delivers exactly what its title promises: Quick summaries of the latest research on diet, physical activity, weight and cancer, delivered straight to your inbox.

Have you subscribed yet? It takes only a few seconds.

The latest issue of CRU is a special edition: We present highlights from last week’s AICR Research Conference on Food, Nutrition, Physical Activity and Cancer – including the study that won top honors at our poster session.

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During the lunch session on the first day of the 20th Annual AICR Research Conference on Food, Nutrition and Physical Activity, the American Institute for Cancer Research honored Dr. Ritva Butrum, who served for many years as AICR’s Vice-President for Research and is now its Senior Scientific Advisor.

At the most recent International Congress of Nutrition, the International Union of Nutritional Sciences named Dr. Butrum a Living Legend. It was only the latest honor in Dr. Butrum’s long and illustrious career. In front of the AICR Research Conference’s 410 attendees, AICR CFO/Executive Vice-President Kelly Browning gave Dr. Butrum a small gift to commemorate her many years of leadership.

Watch a video in which Dr. Butrum talks about her career, and gives advice to young researchers.

After the jump, read a transcript of Browning’s speech honoring Dr. Butrum’s many contributions to AICR, and to the field of nutrition science. (more…)

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Some candid shots from last week’s 20th Annual AICR Research Conference on Food, Nutrition, Physical Activity and Cancer:

From the AICR Research Conference Hide

Several AICR-funded researchers came to our conference last week to present their latest findings in the poster session:

Dr. Emmanuel T. Akporiaye of the Robert W. Franz Cancer Research Center in Portland, Oregon, updated us on the progress of his grant examining the effect of a derivative of vitamin E on breast cancer tumors. (Earlier this year, we profiled Dr. A in AICR’s biweekly e-newsletter Cancer Research Update.  A longer version of that interview appeared in this Summer’s AICR ScienceNow newsletter.)

Dr. Nameer B. Kirma of the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio presented data from his work with soy components and breast cancer.

Dr. Meghan M. Mensack is using an AICR grant at the Colorado State University to study the anti-cancer potential of the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L)

Lots more AICR-funded scientists, after the jump.

(more…)

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