| v> | | | | about a 15% increased risk of developing breast |
| | | | cancer compared with women who got 20% of |
| How much does the way you live your life | | | | their calories from fat. With the 24-hour |
| contribute to your risk for developing breast | | | | dietary recall questionaire, they found a 32% |
| cancer? Read this summary of lifestyle risk | | | | increased risk of breast cancer among women |
| factors in breast cancer. | | | | with a high level of fat in their diet. |
| Although all of the genetic and environmental | | | | Alcohol: Based on scientific evidence, exposure |
| factors are important to consider, the | | | | to alcohol is associated with increased breast |
| overwhelming evidence is that breast cancer is | | | | cancer risk in a dose-dependent fashion. Even |
| related to lifestyle. The following paragraphs | | | | less than one drink/day on a daily basis can be |
| outline the negative impact and positive impact on | | | | associated with up to a 30% increase in breast |
| breast cancer of several common lifestyle related | | | | cancer mortality among postmenopausal women |
| issues. | | | | compared to non-drinkers. The risk may |
| Post-menopausal Obesity Increases Risk: Despite | | | | increase by 7% for each drink per day. Studies |
| the evidence on the protective effect of | | | | have shown that stopping alcohol use may |
| pre-menopausal obesity on pre-menopausal breast | | | | reverse this risk. |
| cancer, the evidence that obesity increases the | | | | Exercise: Exercise has been consistently linked |
| risk of post-menopausal breast cancer is very | | | | with reduced breast cancer risk. A regimen of |
| clear and not debatable. Some have suggested | | | | approximately 30 minutes per day of |
| that tumors are harder to find by physical exam | | | | moderate-intensity exercise should be adequate, |
| and mammography in obese women. This | | | | and perhaps even one to two hours per week is |
| theory has largely been disproved in studies | | | | enough to be helpful. It appears that longer |
| looking at mammography sensitivity and | | | | duration and greater intensity of activity may |
| specificity, as well as studies looking at breast | | | | bring even more health benefits. |
| exam diagnosis in obese patients. If the | | | | Supplements: Americans spend billions of dollars |
| correlation between obesity and cancer mortality | | | | on vitamins and mineral supplements. Recent |
| is entirely causal, some scientists even estimate | | | | large studies, however, have demonstrated that |
| that an overweight condition and/or obesity now | | | | these pills and capsules do not decrease the risk |
| may account for one in seven of cancer deaths in | | | | of many types of cancer. One explanation is |
| men and one in five in women in the US. | | | | that as long as one is not deficient of any |
| High Fat Diet and Breast Cancer: Although | | | | particular vitamin or mineral, ingestion of |
| breast cancer publications and the media have | | | | super-normal levels of supplements does not |
| promulgated the idea that a low fat diet reduces | | | | help. Many women have low levels of vitamin D, |
| cancer risk, most clinical trials have not | | | | and some data have shown that increasing its |
| successfully demonstrated this direct beneficial | | | | level (whether in a pill or by sun exposure) can |
| effect. There have been several methodological | | | | protect somewhat against future breast cancer. |
| explanations for this failure. However, the | | | | In our opinion, botanical dietary supplements |
| reverse observation that a high fat diet increases | | | | derived from green tea extracts represent a |
| breast cancer risk remains solid. For example, a | | | | potentially widely available method for reducing |
| large study funded by the National Institute of | | | | the risk of breast cancer. Next to water, tea is |
| Health looked at 188,736 postmenopausal women | | | | the most widely consumed beverage in the world, |
| and fat intake, based on both food frequency | | | | and its ingestion in reasonable doses is considered |
| questionnaires and 24-hour dietary recall | | | | safe. Many population observation reports have |
| questionnaires. With the food frequency | | | | shown that green tea may decrease the risk of |
| questionnaires, researchers found that women | | | | breast cancer. |
| who got 40% of their calories from fat had | | | | |