10/30/2025
🎙️ Hey Blue Couch Chat fam!!! Let’s talk about something most of us don’t hear about often, but absolutely need to: oral cancer risk and our everyday habits.
A recently published article highlights that by 2025, around 59,000 Americans will face diagnoses of oral or oropharyngeal cancer, many of which could have been prevented.
Here’s what might be raising the risk, and what you can do about it:
🔸 To***co use (smoking or chewing) remains the single biggest culprit. One big change: quit or never start.
🔸 Alcohol isn’t harmless. Even just one drink a day may increase risk by ~40%, and two drinks can nearly double it.
🔸 HPV (human papillomavirus) is behind about 60% of oral cancers. Vaccination, safe practices, and dental screening all matter.
🔸 Skipping check-ups or poor oral hygiene? That matters too. Your dentist plays a key role in spotting changes early.
🔸 Bonus protective moves: Lip balm with SPF (yes, your lips count 🎯), antioxidant-rich foods (think berries, leafy greens), staying hydrated, maintaining clean oral hygiene routines.
💬 At Blue Couch Chat, we believe that knowledge is power, and prevention is a profound act of self-care and community care. You don’t have to be at high risk to take action. Whether you’re a survivor, a caregiver, or someone fighting for health equity in underserved communities, this is for you.
✨ Here’s a simple challenge for this week:
1. Book or plan your next dental exam (or ensure your loved one does).
2. If you consume alcohol, reflect on your intake and consider reducing it.
3. If you use any form of to***co, reach out for support . Quitting is the biggest single risk-reduction move.
4. Share this post — because when we pass knowledge forward, we save lives.
Together, let’s show up for ourselves. Let’s show up for our loved ones. Let’s show up for our communities.
***co
An estimated 59,000 Americans will be diagnosed this year. But most cases are preventable.
