Can “maxxing” help prevent cancer? – Cancer Research UK

Tanmaxxing is closely related to looksmaxxing, one of the first types of maxxing to gain mainstream attention, and tanfluencers stress that tans help people look their best. That’s subjective, but many of their other claims aren’t. Base tanning is not an effective way of protecting yourself from sunburn, and products like coconut oil or tan accelerators don’t offer any protection from the sun. 

The fact is, there’s no such thing as ‘healthy’ tanning from UV radiation, whether it’s from the sun or sunbeds. Tanning is a sign that the DNA in skin cells is being damaged by UV rays, and DNA damage is the primary cause of cancer. 

In the UK, up to 9 in 10 cases of melanoma – one of the most serious types of skin cancer – could be prevented by staying safe in the sun. So, when the UV index is 3 or higher, which can happen at any time between March and October in the UK, even when it’s cloudy, you should make use of shade, cover up with clothing and apply sunscreen with at least SPF 30 and four or five stars.  

For more on the facts and fictions of sun safety, read our mythbusting article.

Moderationmaxxing

For something that focuses on extremes, healthmaxxing can be surprisingly nuanced.

It’s not all good, but for the most part, it’s not inherently harmful, either. There are elements of fibremaxxing, sleepmaxxing, proteinmaxxing and strengthmaxxing that can make a real positive difference to your health. But it’s difficult to maximise four things at once, even if you give up everything else. 

That’s why healthmaxxing isn’t the best way to stay healthy and reduce your cancer risk. Going all out for one thing that might be good for you almost always means ignoring something else that’s also beneficial. Maxxing’s unrealistic goals can also create unnecessary pressure, making the thing you’re trying to focus on much harder to enjoy or keep up with over time. 

A lot of this goes back to how maxxing started. Originally, it was min-maxing, an approach to role-playing games where players make characters so powerful in some areas they can hide big weaknesses in others. That might work in a game, where all the rules are written down or programmed somewhere, but your body and the world are much more complicated and chaotic. In this reality, balance is usually best.

Ultimately, there are no guarantees when it comes to cancer, but making healthy changes does help reduce your risk. The best ways to do that are by not smoking, maintaining a healthy weight and staying safe in the sun.

Beyond that, it’s good to eat a balanced diet with more fibre, find some healthy habits you enjoy doing and keep some time left over to just be you, as minimally and suboptimally as suits you best.

But, in the gaming spirit, if a grand fibremaxxing quest helps you swap bacon for chickpeas, then sally forth, brave bean knight. Just take heed as ye go: the wonders influencers peddle are not worthy of thy coin.