Some Nourishing News on Nutrition and Breast Cancer, Regarding Women, Fall 2005

Some Nourishing News on Nutrition and Breast Cancer

More American women get breast cancer than any other non-skin cancer. And only lung cancer is deadlier. Could your diet help foil breast cancer? Experts suggest the following tactics:

Get your fill of folate. Some studies have suggested that the B-vitamin folate might help prevent breast cancer. Many foods contain high amounts of folate. Just three-quarters of a cup of folate-fortified cereal, for example, will fulfill between 25 and 100% of your daily needs, depending upon which cereal you pick. Other healthy foods that offer between 10 and 25% of your daily quota include black-eyed peas, white beans, asparagus, spinach, green peas, avocados, broccoli, peanuts, romaine lettuce, wheat germ, tomato juice, and orange juice.

Skip cocktail hour. Do you enjoy a drink every now and then? If so, you could be doing your heart a favor, since moderate drinking has been linked with a lower risk for heart disease. However, having just one or two alcoholic drinks per day may boost the risk for breast cancer, according to several studies.
Opt for olive oil. Researchers writing in a recent issue of the Annals of Oncology concluded that oleic acid, the main monounsaturated fatty acid contained in olive oil, helps suppress a gene that causes hereditary breast cancer. So, top your high-folate spinach salad with an olive oil–based dressing.
Limit red meat and high-fat dairy products. A recent study in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute reports that women who ate the most of these foods developed breast cancer at higher rates than women who ate the least. In place of these high-fat animal foods, substitute lean meats, including seafood and white-meat poultry; low-fat dairy products; and alternate protein sources, such as high-folate beans.

Fact
Studies have found the lowest risks for breast cancer in women who stay the most active. A recent article in the journal The Oncologist suggests that by exercising three to four hours per week, a woman might reduce her risk for breast cancer by 30 to 40%.

The editorial content for this article was taken from the print version of Regarding Women. Click here to sign up for future editions of Regarding Women.

return to top of page