Welcome and thank you for joining us for a very important health education lesson.
My name is Courtney Berry and I serve as a health educator here at the Blue Door Neighborhood Center. Our goal at the Blue Door Neighborhood Center is to positively impact the community's health. We are located in Chicago's Pullman, Morgan Park and South Lawndale communities. We offer health education and low impact fitness classes at no cost. Currently, we are offering all of our classes virtually and in person.
In today's health education lesson, we will discuss colorectal cancer. Our objectives for today are to understand colorectal cancer, understand the risk of colorectal cancer, and prevention and management of colorectal cancer.
What is colorectal cancer?
Cancer is a disease in which some of the body's cells grow uncontrollably and spread to other parts of the body. Colorectal cancer is a disease of the colon or rectum, which are parts of the digestive system.
Cancer effects 1 in 3 people in the United States.
Colorectal cancer mostly occurs in people ages 45 and older, but the disease is increasingly affecting younger people.
Colorectal cancer is the second most common cancer in the US among men and women and the 4th leading cause of cancer death in Illinois. African Americans have the highest rates of colorectal cancer.
What are the symptoms of colorectal cancer?
Blood in or on stool. Persistent unusual bowel movements like Constipation or diarrhea. Stomach pain, aches or cramps that don't go away. Losing weight for no reason.
But the most common symptom is no symptom at all.
How do you maintain a healthy diet?
Eat a high fiber diet consisting of whole grains, nuts, peas and lentils.
Remember to eat the rainbow by eating fresh fruits and vegetables and reduce your red meat consumption and processed meats by limiting your red meat intake to 18 oz per week.
Limit the amount of alcohol you drink.
We recommend no alcohol, but if you must indulge, limit 2 drinks or less per day for men and 1 drink or less per day for women.
Try to stop smoking and using other tobacco products.
If you need assistance with quitting smoking, please join us at one of our 3 Blue Door neighborhood locations for our Courage to Quit cessation classes.
Maintain a healthy body weight and remember to move your body.
The CDC recommends exercising 150 minutes per week for adults.
Join us at the blue bird neighborhood Center for some of our low impact fitness classes such as virtual Zumba, virtual yoga, line dancing and senior fitness screening, which is testing for colorectal cancer is the number one way you can prevent colon cancer and rectal cancer with screening.
Colorectal cancer is one of the preventable cancers.
That's why on time screening is essential and life saving screening should begin at 45. Currently, the Blue Door Neighborhood Center has a 3-year colorectal cancer initiative. We are giving away free fit kits to anyone within the community ages 45 to 75 that has not had a positive test or screening in the past year.
When you obtain a free FIT kit from any one of our 3 Blue Door Neighborhood Center locations, you will receive a $10 gift card. You will receive an additional $10 gift card when you bring back those results to any one of our 3 Blue Door Neighborhood Center locations.
With the help of screening test, doctors can detect polyps, remove them and prevent them from developing into colorectal cancer.
Now, living with a cancer diagnosis can be very difficult and stressful. There is no specific road map to coping with a positive diagnosis. So what you want to do is learn as much as you can about your diagnosis.
Take control of your cancer diagnosis. This gives you a sense of control in an uncertain time.
Ask your medical care team about your diagnosis. Look at reliable websites that provides education, support services and support people with cancer. Talking with your healthcare team can seem intimidating or challenging, and asking questions may seem disrespectful, but it's not.
Take notes at your medical appointments.
You may feel overwhelmed when talking with your healthcare team, so take notes to record for understanding and find the next steps.
Locate support groups.
Support group peers can give you tips and support on how to overcome challenges.
And remember, the Blue Door Neighborhood Center is here to support you.
See you soon at 1 of our t3 locations.
Please stay connected with us at www.bluedoorcenteril.com and follow us on Facebook at Blue Door Center, IL.
