Causes and Prevention

While there is currently no exact cause of colorectal cancer we are aware of many of the factors that
contribute to the development of the disease. Nutritional content high in fat and red meat, low or
deficient fiber, sedentary and inactive lifestyle, high blood pressure, obesity, alcohol use, and
smoking all are manageable factors controlled with a healthy lifestyle that are known to contribute to
colorectal cancer.
Following a diet of healthy and natural food sources that are high in fiber and calcium and lower in
fat along with utilizing lean protein sources and diverse in both vegetable and healthy fats goes a
long way in preventative measures. Adding regular exercise and increasing activity also strongly
influence health. Regulating alcohol for a few drinks a week or less and smoking cessation are
strongly advised.
Screening, Risk, and Practices
As with many aspects of public health awareness is critical of both of choices you can make and
those you cant. Screening of family history for risk factors is an effective way to be aware of
unavoidable risk factors. Colonoscopies and sigmoidoscopy after the age of 50 are the biggest tool
and best method for screening. As an outpatient procedure, lacking the need for heavy sedation or
anesthesia, taking less than an hour they are very patient friendly. For those under or uninsured
stool testing for trace blood is more economical in many cases. Removal of polyps or growths and
testing as secondary prevention is often possible as a result of screening as opposed to without and
the difficulty of treating more advanced cases that were not found. Evidence supports low aspirin as
a preventative to colorectal cancer and may be advised.
Social media is a powerful tool for promoting conversation and raising awareness. As a result,
conversation directly leads to behavior change and modification. YouTube, Facebook, Twitter,
Instagram, and Tumbler are commonly used social media sites utilized in reaching and engaging
massive audiences and promoting awareness. This leads to the next practice which requires
consideration, and that is presence, audience, and commitment. With the amount of free social
media options it is important to consider which social presences will reach the target audience and
which are irrelevant to the population or less popular. Social media outreach can easily be made to
require a huge time commitment which is another reason it is important to understand your ability to
devote manpower to the task. Goal setting is another important tool to measure success to consider.
Page likes, shares, tagging, retweeting, and times mentioned are viable statistics to track to show
the relationship with the audience. Without goal setting it is difficult to gauge progresses and value.
Regular, routine, and authentic updates are also critical in engaging social media. If a tool is
underutilized, rarely maintained, and infrequently kept up it will work its way into obscurity and find it
impossible to generate larger audiences. Creative and authentic material is also important because
of the ease of access to information. Social media constantly floods us with information sources and
uninspired information is often ignored by an already oversaturated audience.

References

Cancer.org. (2015). Colorectal Cancer. Retrieved from

http://www.cancer.org/cancer/colonandrectumcancer/detailedguide/colorectalcancer-new-research
Center for Disease Control and Prevention CDC.org. (2015) Gateway to Health
Communication & Social Marketing Practices. Retrieved from
http://www.cdc.gov/healthcommunication/HealthBasics/WhatIsHC.html
What are the risk factors for colorectal cancer? (2014, December 31). Retrieved
February 17, 2016,
fromhttp://www.cancer.org/cancer/colonandrectumcancer/overviewguide/colorectalcancer-overview-what-causes