Colon cancer survivor urges people not to dismiss chronic symptoms: I normalized it

Maria Kang built her career around fitness, healthy eating and helping other moms prioritize wellness.But despite believing she had done “everything right,” the California mother of three was blindsided by colon cancer.Kang, now 46, said the diagnosis completely reshaped her understanding of what it means to be healthy.She became an internet sensation in 2013 after a photo of her sculpted physique alongside her three young sons sparked a global conversation about fitness and motherhood.The viral image — captioned “What’s your excuse?” — led to her being dubbed the “No Excuse Mom” and inspired the launch of hundreds of wellness communities around the world.More than a decade later, Kang’s world was turned upside down when she learned that she had stage 4 colon cancer in November 2023.“It was definitely a complete shock — because I was the healthiest person I knew,” she shared with Fox News Digital.

“I wanted to blame the food, but I didn’t eat bad food.I filtered my water.

There was no excuse why I had this cancer.”Looking back, Kang said she had experienced persistent digestive problems since adolescence, including chronic constipation and bloating that worsened with stress.“It didn’t matter how many fiber pills or laxatives, it just took a long time to go,” she said.“So that’s been an ongoing journey throughout my life.”Over the years, Kang said, she convinced herself that her digestive problems were just something she had to live with.“One thing that I realized is that we normalize problems, and we think it’s OK, but it’s not OK,” she said.

“Digestion should be like breathing.It should be like inhaling and exhaling.

It should be simple.But it wasn’t simple.” Morning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more.

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