A study of thousands of Iowa women shows adopting a healthy lifestyle later in life can help reduce the risk of getting cancer. The study was led by Minnesota researcher Jim Cerhan at the Mayo Clinic. He says post-menopausal women who adopted healthy living guidelines were less likely to get cancer. Cerhan says “These guidelines are fairly familiar and can be summarized as don’t smoke, exercise regularly, control body weight and eat a healthy diet.” The study followed 30-thousand post-menopausal Iowa women and is believed to be the most comprehensive study of its kind. Cerhan says there are clear benefits for patients who change their lifestyles as they age.Cerhan says “I think one of the interesting messages from this paper is that it’s really not too late, even in middle-age, you can do something to lower your cancer risk in a positive way. That is, by taking some simple steps you can lower your risk of cancer.” The study is published in today’s edition of the journal “Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention.”