This month is Breast Cancer Awareness month and the colour is Pink
Breast cancer is common. One woman in seven will develop breast cancer. One in five cases occur in young women. The earlier you find it the better.
Risks You Control
Diet
Diet is the major cause of breast cancer, and it is your choice what you eat as opposed to choosing your parents, your age or your oestrogen levels.
Bad things to avoid :
Dairy products. Modern cows produce 30 litres of milk a day, 365 days a year, which if you are a cow, is hard work. 100 years ago, cows produced 4-5 litres a day for a few months of each year. Cows can only achieve this level of productivity by producing massive amounts of Insulin Growth Factors (IGF). IGF stimulates growth, including the growth of cancers. Milk contains high levels of this hormone. Professor Jane Plant a professor of Geochemistry, herself had breast cancer and to fight it, did her own research. Her book Your life in Your Hands looks at breast cancer across countries and provides clear evidence that diet is linked to breast cancer, particularly dairy products.
Just as the tobacco industry does not accept that tobacco causes cancers, the food industry accept that dairy and animal products cause health problems. Dermatologists don’t accept that what you eat affects the skin, despite clear evidence linking diet and skin diseases. The first weapon in the battle for control is confusion – muddled messages and an opposition in disarray (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25053983)
Food can be medicine and it can also mean disease. What we put in our mouths affects our wellbeing. Healthy food improves health. Milk comes from shrivelled cows with overlarge udders and mastitis. You choose!
Avoid alcohol – at least keep it to less than one drink a day
Exercise
Lack of Exercise 4 to 7 hours of moderate exercise protects you against breast cancer – that is less than an hour a day – walk a little more, sit a little less
Babies
Babies can protect you against breast cancer. Women who have their first child before the age of 30 and breast feed for 12 months or longer are protected against breast cancer
Risks You Don’t Control
Age – nothing any of us can do about getting older, and the risk of breast cancer increase with age – Most cancers occur in women over the age of 70 – however 20% occur in young women, so you need to be alert
Gender – 99% of breast cancer occurs in women, however men get breast cancer, I have seen two cases, and as with women, early treatment is critical.
Genetics – you don’t choose your parents. However very few cancers are due to a faulty gene such as the BRAC gene, although breast cancer can run in families, but then so do lifestyles. And lifestyle is far more important overall in determining whether or not you will get breast cancer
Check your breasts – Check out Instagram : Coralie Jo and Dr Liz Miller discuss how to check your breasts