Nutrition

Making wise nutritional choices is one of the best defenses against breast cancer.

Here are a few nutrition tips that can to put to work in your own life:

• Eat a plant! At least two-thirds of your plate should be fresh vegetables and whole grains. No more than one-third should be animal protein.

• Start your day with whole grain cereals. They contain folates, a B vitamin, which helps prevent breast cancer. Top with melons and strawberries, which are also rich in folates.

• Add asparagus, beans, and even sunflower seeds to your lunch salad of leafy greens including spinach and romaine. You’ll get even more folate.

• Think tomatoes. It’s the lycopene which studies link to a reduction in several cancers including cancers of the breast.

• Go green—tea that is. Several studies show regular green tea consumption has slowed or even prevented the development of breast cancer.

• Limit or eliminate alcohol. Even one glass of wine a day has been linked to higher breast cancer risk.

• Cook wisely. Stew, braise or steam rather than fry, grill or broil. High temperatures may cause cancer-causing chemicals to form that may increase cancer risk.

Download our Healthy Eating Grocery List to help you at the store!

Click here to download the iGoPink Grocery List in English
Click here to download the iGoPink Grocery List in Spanish

Exercise

Being physically active significantly boosts the odds that you will survive the disease. Breast Cancer Charities of America has held this position from inception. Now we have several studies that show that exercise improves the prospects of beating any malignancy.

A large, well-respected study of U.S. nurses found that breast cancer patients who walk or do other kinds of moderate exercise for three to five hours a week are about 50 percent less likely to die from the disease than sedentary women are.

Cancer survivors are markedly diverse in their physical activity goals. Very few set out to run a marathon or become Olympic athletes. Instead, the most common exercise goal among cancer survivors is to experience an increase in energy.

We recommend that you find a type of exercise that you enjoy. Then practice that routine just until you feel an increased flexibility and a sense of elation. And the psychological benefits are even greater - joy, enthusiasm, and mental vitality. What a payoff!

Make exercise part of your breast cancer recovery program. No matter how long it has been since you have exercised, no matter how incapacitated or confined you are, there are exercises you can do. Exercise will help you get well and stay well!

For tips and ideas for smart exercises, visit our blog!

Vitamin D

Vitamin D’s influence on key biological functions vital to health and well-being mandates that vitamin D no longer be ignored neither by the health care industry nor by individuals striving to achieve and maintain a greater state of health.

Natural production of vitamin D3 cholecalciferol (pronounced koh·luh·kal·SIF·uh·rawl) in the skin is the single most important fact every person should know about vitamin D—a fact that has profound implications for the natural human condition.

Technically not a “vitamin,” vitamin D is actually a hormone that interacts with over 2000 genes, about 10-percent of the human genome. Extensive research has implicated vitamin D deficiency as a major factor in the pathology of at least seventeen varieties of cancer including breast cancer, as well as a variety of other diseases.

The Message

There are three safe ways for adults to ensure adequate levels of vitamin D:

1.Regularly receive 15 - 20 minutes of midday sun exposure, exposing as much of the skin as possible while being careful never to burn.

2.Supplement with at least 2,000 IU per day.*

3.Eat foods rich in vitamin D. Regularly include these foods in your diet:

• Salmon, fresh and wild caught
• Sardines
• Mackerel
• Tuna
• Shitake mushrooms
• Eggs
• Fortified milk
• Fortified orange juice
• Fortified yogurt
• Fortified breakfast cereals

It’s your decision. Choose the combination of options right for you and your lifestyle. But choose! Maintain you levels of Vitamin D!

The skin produces approximately 10,000 IU vitamin D in response to 15 - 20 minutes summer sun exposure. However, most people do not receive 15 - 20 minutes of sun exposure daily. This is especially true in Northern and Southern latitudes during their winter months. In addition, when well adults and adolescents regularly avoid sunlight exposure, research indicates a necessity to supplement with at least 2,000 units (IU) of vitamin D daily.

The Science

The effects of wise nutritional choices for preventing chronic and terminal diseases have been the focus of many recent studies. The most promising research on less-toxic and minimally-invasive, more natural breast cancer prevention is centered on the nutrient vitamin D.

Excellent science shows that vitamin D hinders inappropriate cell division and metastasis, decreases blood vessel formation around tumors, and regulates proteins that influence tumor growth. It also enhances the immune system’s ability to fight cancer as well as promotes the abilities of chemotherapeutic medicines.

Vitamin D has been linked to a 77-percent lower risk of some cancers, including breast cancer. The research shows vitamin D to be an effective cancer preventative and the scientific evidence is growing:

• Women who are vitamin D deficient have a 222% increased risk for developing breast cancer.
• Ecologic studies have shown an inverse correlation between breast cancer mortality and vitamin D levels.

In short, we are a nation and a world that is deficient in vitamin D. Over 900 scientific studies link vitamin D deficiency with breast cancer. But the medical community has been reluctant, slow to respond. Now that message must be shared with all women in the quest to end breast cancer.

The effects of wise nutritional choices for preventing chronic and terminal diseases have been the focus of many recent studies. The most promising research on less-toxic and minimally-invasive, more natural breast cancer prevention is centered on the nutrient vitamin D.

Excellent science shows that vitamin D hinders inappropriate cell division and metastasis, decreases blood vessel formation around tumors, and regulates proteins that influence tumor growth. It also enhances the immune system’s ability to fight cancer as well as promotes the abilities of chemotherapeutic medicines.

Vitamin D has been linked to a 77-percent lower risk of some cancers, including breast cancer. The research shows vitamin D to be an effective cancer preventative and the scientific evidence is growing:

• Women who are vitamin D deficient have a 222% increased risk for developing breast cancer.
• Ecologic studies have shown an inverse correlation between breast cancer mortality and vitamin D levels.

In short, we are a nation and a world that is deficient in vitamin D. Over 900 scientific studies link vitamin D deficiency with breast cancer. But the medical community has been reluctant, slow to respond. Now that message must be shared with all women in the quest to end breast cancer.

Proton Therapy

Proton Therapy is a relatively newer form of cancer treatment. It has shown remarkable promise and advantages over conventional therapy in the treatment of breast cancer.

Proton radiation therapy is non-invasive treatment that offers a low-risk option for early breast cancer patients. It has less impact on the healthy tissue near the tumor site that is being treated with the proton therapy. This is because the proton goes directly in to the tumor with pinpoint precision and stays within the tumor. This is unlike traditional therapies that have an exit point. Compared to traditional radiation, proton therapy does not leave any burn marks and does not cause any cosmetic or tissue damage.

Image Credit: University of Florida Proton Therapy Institute

Visit our Proton Therapy page for more information.

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