You Can Prevent Breast Cancer

Sometimes, one suffers from breast cancer even if you've taken all the necessary precautions and preventive measures. Call it fate or whatever, but if you do take care, the chances of suffering from it suddenly get that much smaller! Anyway, today, breast cancer is not the terrible disease it was a few years ago. Many women survive even after a bad case. Here, too, if it is detected early, there's that much more of a chance to get absolutely back to normal as quickly as possible. What are the ways that you can prevent breast cancer? Take a look at the measures that you could adopt to prevent this condition. While it is not foolproof, it will definitely help in keeping the disease at bay.

First of all, watch your weight. High estrogen levels mean you could be more prone to breast cancer. The levels of estrogen go up when there is more fatty tissue in the body. This usually happens during menopause when hormonal changes mean that women tend to put on weight. Unfortunately, this is the time when not too many women bother about how they look so they just themselves go. What you need to do is to practice self-control and say a stern No to all fatty foods. This is one way to keep your weight down. Don't eat because you're bored or feeling low or you're lonely. Think slim and get there. It might be worth it talking to your doctor about the quantities that you need every day and the kind of foods to eat and what to avoid. The other way to do this is to exercise. No, you do not have to spend hours at the gym. Just walk or swim if you can't manage an exercise regime. Make sure you exercise regularly, not in fits and starts. You need at least half an hour of exercise everyday. If you're overweight, maybe a bit more initially till you lose a bit of weight. Make this time sacrosanct.

It's best if women cut down on the drinking. Never mind what kind of alcohol, anything is bad news as far as breast cancer goes. Why this is so is anyone's guess but the link between the two is strong so it is best avoided. Maybe the occasional drink when you are celebrating something is fine, otherwise stick to non-alcoholic beverages. What is very good as a preventive is a citrus juice. All citrus fruits are supposed to lower the risks of breast cancer.

Antibiotics and pesticides are also bad for breast cancer. Try and use natural alternatives to get rid of pests and as far as antibiotics are concerned do not use them unless it is absolutely necessary. What is good not only for the heart but to prevent breast cancer as well seems to be aspirin. A regular intake is supposed to be beneficial.

The temptation to go in for hormone therapy is great especially when you are in the throes of hot flashes and irritability. But it is known to aggravate breast cancer. Ideally, one should just grin and try and bear the menopausal years instead of looking for quick-fix remedies.

Just a few dos and don'ts and suddenly you could find the road ahead of you clear and breast cancer-free!!

Breastfeed and Reduce Breast Cancer Risk - For You and Your Baby

Are you concerned about breast cancer? Most women are. It doesn't help that women seem to be getting breast cancer at younger ages. The recent news of Christina Applegate's cancer has many younger women scared.

If you're breastfeeding, then you can be assured that you're doing something positive to cut your risk for developing one of the most common forms of cancer among women. And you're protecting your baby as well.

The World Cancer Research Fund/American Institute for Cancer Research (WCRF/AICR) found convincing evidence that breastfeeding protects mothers from developing breast cancer, both before and after menopause. Breastfeeding also protects the breastfed child from developing cancers that are linked with being overweight and obesity. These include post-menopausal breast cancer and cancers of the esophagus, pancreas, colorectum, and kidney.

One reason breastfeeding reduces the mother's risk for developing breast cancer because it causes her to stop menstruating for many months. Some women do not resume menstruating (and therefore ovulating) until after they stop breastfeeding altogether - even for several months or two years or more. This period of amenorrhea, or absence of menstruation, is a signal that the woman's hormones have shifted to a state that reduces her chances of developing breast cancer. And the longer a woman breastfeeds, the greater her protection against breast cancer.

Apparently, the natural hormonal changes that women experience during menstruation increase breast cancer risk. This explains why women who have never been pregnant (another period of amenorrhea) have increased risk for breast cancer.

Another way that breastfeeding may protect mothers from breast cancer is by getting rid of breast cells during lactation. These include cells that could develop or already have damaged DNA.

Don't worry, the damaged cells aren't harming your baby through your breastmilk. In fact, breastfed babies have reduced risk for developing breast cancer and other forms of cancer. And again, the longer the baby is breastfed, the greater the protective effect.

Breastfeeding is only one of the many ways that you can protect your baby and yourself against cancer. WCRF/AICR gives the following 10 recommendations to help you avoid cancer:

1. Be as lean as possible within the normal range of body weight for your body type.
2. Be physically active as part of everyday life. Exercising three times a week halves your cancer risk.
3. Limit consumption of energy-dense foods. Avoid sugary drinks.
4. Eat mostly foods of plant origin: whole grains, vegetables, fruit, legumes.
5. Limit intake of red meat and avoid processed meats that contain nitrites and nitrates.
6. Limit alcoholic drinks - more than one a day is associated with increased cancer risk.
7. Limit consumption of salt. Avoid moldy cereals (grains) or pulses (legumes).
8. Aim to meet nutritional needs through diet alone, not supplements.
9. Mothers to breastfeed; children to be breastfed.
10. Cancer survivors: Follow the recommendations for cancer.

Remember: The World Health Organization and United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) recommend exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months. Afterwards, breastfeeding should continue, along with complementary foods, for two years or longer.