Lower your breast cancer risk with the right foods

By Holly Pevzner

You can lower your risk for breast cancer by reaching for the right foods, according to five new studies.

"A woman can cut her chance of cancer by as much as two-thirds with good nutrition and weight management," says Cheryl L. Rock, Ph.D., R.D., professor of family and preventive medicine at the University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine. "Even a woman who carries the BRCA1 or 2 gene (two genetic mutations that boost a woman's risk) can reduce her risk."

Fill your diet with lean protein and plentiful produce — to help keep your weight in check and provide cancer-fighting compounds. Good choices:

1. Salmon

Taking fish-oil supplements for at least 10 years can shrink your risk of ductal carcinoma, the most common type of breast cancer, according to a study in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention. It's thought that the omega-3 fats in fish oil reduce inflammation, which may contribute to breast cancer. But you can skip the supplement aisle, say researchers, and eat about eight ounces of oily fish (salmon, sardines, tuna) a week.

2. Olive Oil

Here's another reason to reach for extra- virgin olive oil: When researchers in Barcelona gave rats with breast cancer a diet in which fat came predominantly from extra-virgin olive oil (vs. corn oil), they found that the olive oil's antioxidants and oleic acid (a mono- unsaturated fat) quelled the growth of malignant cells.

3. Broccoli

Sulforaphane, a compound in broccoli, reduced the number of breast cancer stem cells (which cause cancer spread and recurrence) in mice, according to research from the University of Michigan. Eating broccoli may not deliver enough sulforaphane to achieve the same effect, but to get the most you can, eat your broccoli raw or briefly steam or stir-fry the green florets. (Boiling destroys some of the sulforaphane.)

4. Parsley

University of Missouri scientists found that this herb can actually inhibit cancer-cell growth. Animals that were given apigenin, a compound abundant in parsley (and in celery), boosted their resistance to developing cancerous tumors. Experts recommend adding a couple pinches of minced fresh parsley to your dishes daily.

5. Coffee

Drinking about two 12-ounce coffees a day may lower your risk of an aggressive form of breast cancer, says a May 2011 study in Breast Cancer Research.

"One possibility is that coffee's antioxidants protect cells from damage that can lead to cancer," says study author Jingmei Li, Ph.D. More research is needed, so don't up your intake based on these figures just yet.

(EatingWell is a magazine and website devoted to healthy eating as a way of life. Online at http://www.eatingwell.com.)

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Antioxidant Juices: Which Packs the Most Punch?

A Japanese study shows green tea consumption does not help protect a person from the risk of breast cancer.
Previous research regarding the intake of the green tea suggested its potential to protect a person from obtaining breast cancer. However, the latest study of Japanese researchers found no connection between green tea and breast cancer protection among Japanese women subjects.

The finding’s report is published in the Breast Cancer Research journal.

Lead researcher Dr. Motoki Iwasaki, at the Research Center for Cancer Prevention and Screening of the National Cancer Center in Tokyo, said that their team found no association between the protection from the risk of breast cancer from habitual intake of green tea by large number of Japanese women.

He added on their finding that the habitual drinking of green tea among those women does not reduce the risk of acquiring the illness.

According to Iwasaki, one factor regarding the strength of their new study was its potential, the data and information they have was gathered before the acquisition of the breast cancer illness.

Experts studied 53,793 individuals, between 1995 and 1998. These women were asked about the amount of green tea they consumed.

Researchers asked the question at the start of their study, and after five years, they took another survey, questioning participants regarding two different kind of green tea, Bancha/Genmaicha and Sencha.

On the study, 12 percent of these women drink less than a cup of green tea a week, while almost 27 percent drink more than five cups a day and others drinks up to ten cups daily.

After 14 years of follow-up on their research, 350 women were diagnosed to have breast cancer. Still, researchers found no links between green tea intake and the possible development of breast cancer to  a person.

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Antioxidants Can Improve Insulin Sensitivity

Antioxidants and Women's Health

By: Steven Godlewski

Women have a great number of potential health issues to be concerned about. This doesn't mean that men don't have concerns of their own; it just means that women seem to have a lot more things that can go wrong with their bodies than men do, including natural processes, such as pregnancy and menopause.

Breast cancer, ovarian cancer, and osteoporosis are just a few of the major concerns - but there are many more. While we have become more aware of women's health issues, and the prevention of many diseases and illnesses, the health problems that plague women persist, and seem to grow even greater and more urgent. This isn't surprising since over 40,000 women will die in the United States alone in 2006 from breast cancer.

Then, there are the other health issues that seem to plague women. These other issues may not be as deadly as others, but they are just as important. Depression and weight issues are at the top of that list. Women struggle with depression at an alarming rate. Again, men also get depressed, but studies have shown that this is a condition that affects women more commonly. Men also struggle with their weight, but they are traditionally better able to get and keep weight off then women are.

What many women don't realize is that depression and weight issues are often tied in with toxins in the body. These toxins cause numerous health problems, and they prevent other health issues from being resolved - including depression and the loss of excess weight. Unfortunately, these toxins tend to make matters worse, because the problems are not resolved even when treatment is sought. Women often start to think that something is seriously wrong with them when they don't respond as expected to treatment, when toxins in the body are the culprit all along!

Even though the body produces natural antioxidants that cleanse these toxins from our systems, the natural antioxidants simply can't keep up with the demands in the toxic world that we live in. Therefore, we must help the body rid itself of these toxins by using antioxidant products, and eating foods that contain natural antioxidants.

By detoxifying the body, you will find that depression usually goes away. Antioxidants also serve as diuretics, bring blood sugar levels into the normal range, and oxygenate the cells properly. Libido is restored and thyroid hormone action, which controls metabolism and ultimately weight loss, is also promoted. By detoxifying the body, a woman also protects against fibroid cysts in the breasts, and helps to prevent breast cancer.

Antioxidants have also proven to be instrumental in preventing endometrial cancers as well, and also help to prevent osteoporosis. All of these issues are of great concern to women, and therefore, women should use antioxidants on a regular basis for good health.

About the Author

Steven Godlewski is a self-made millionaire and is currently working with the staff at PillFreeVitamins.com He has an extensive background in nutrition as well as other health related fields. For more health-related articles or a FREE bottle of Liquid Vitamins see their website at: http://www.pillfreevitamins.com