8 Steps for Healthy Breasts

One in eight women will suffer from a serious breast health issue in their lifetime. Breast health can be caused by a variety of factors, such as genetic, hormonal, physiological, and environmental pathogens. One of the main causes of breast diseases is excessive levels of estrogen metabolites. While estrogen is essential for women’s health, excess estrogen can lead to toxicity, causing different types of estrogen-related diseases.

Research suggests that we can reduce the risk of breast-related diseases by approximately 90% with the implementation of healthy strategies. Some of these preventative measures to increase breast health include eating well, staying active, and maintaining a healthy body weight.

8 Steps To Increase Breast (And Overall) Health For Longevity And To Feel Better.

1. Get Enough Vitamin D
Vitamin D can reduce the risk of breast cancer by up to 60%. Research shows that women in tropical countries have less risk of breast cancer dude to sufficient healthy vitamin D from sun exposure in comparison to northern countries. I recommend getting your vitamin D levels tested annually by a blood test to ensure you’re getting the optimal amount.

2. Exercise Daily
Find exercise you enjoy, and stick to it! Daily exercise can significantly reduce your risk of developing breast-related diseases, and paired with optimizing vitamin D intake, you can reduce your risk of breast cancer by 80%. Studies show that exercising just 4 hours per week reduces breast cancer by 40%.

3. Increase Your Intake Of Phytoestrogen Foods
Phytoestrogens are foods that bind to estrogen receptors. When you eat phytoestrogens foods, such as broccoli, ground flax, and pumpkin seeds, you reduce the activity of stronger estrogens from binding to receptors sites. When these stronger estrogen hormones are active, they can cause breast cells to divide more quickly, and during a high-volume division of cells, there can be a potential risk which can cause cancer.

4. Darken Your Room For Sleeping
As you sleep between 1 and 3 am, the hormone melatonin is secreted. If your room isn’t very dark, your production of melatonin will be reduced. Lower melatonin levels are linked to the development of breast cancer. Another bonus of creating a darker room for sleeping is that melatonin also produces anti-aging effects and decreases excess estrogen which can positively affect breast health.

5. Reduce Your Exposure To Environmental Chemicals
Women, men, and children are exposed to a plethora of environmental chemicals, which play a key role in breast health. Many of these chemicals mimic estrogen, which confuse the body and can cause disease. Here are a few ways you can reduce your exposure to environmental chemicals:

• Avoid bottled water stored in plastics
• Avoid microwaving
• Avoid storing food in plastic containers, plastic wraps, and cellophane. Use glass, stainless steel, and beeswax wraps instead
• Avoid the use of birth control pills, hormone replacement and fertility drugs for more than five years total in a lifetime
• Eat organic animal products whenever possible
• Sweat daily through either exercise or infrared saunas. Sweating allows you to dispel pesticides and bisphenol A, thus promoting healthier breasts
• Choose chemical-free cosmetics. Be especially wary of parabens, which mimic estrogen

6. Reduce Your Stress
With our busy lives, it’s now more important than ever to create a daily self-care practice that includes time for relaxation. Giving ourselves the opportunity to relax helps balance our hormones and regulate production of cortisol, a hormone released when the body has a stress response. Practice calm breathing, take time to read a book, enjoy a hot bath, or drink a delicious cup of herbal tea. Incorporating simple activities like these can dramatically improve your health.

7. Optimize Your Diet • Increase your intake of healthy fats. • Eat at least 5-10 servings of fruit and vegetables per day. • Reduce your consumption of meat. • Reduce your sugar intake. • Supplement your diet with antioxidants. • Drink green tea.
8. Maintain A Healthy Body Weight
When you have excess body fat, your body can produce extra hormones which may impact your breast health. Follow the above nutritional guidelines, sweat daily, and make time to regulate your nervous system to maintain a healthy body weight.

By incorporating these diet and lifestyle tips, you can minimize the risks of breast-related illness and live a healthier life. Here’s to your health.

This blog was sourced from Posted by Marita Schauch, ND at womensvoice.com