Check In For Diets

Time for a Breast Cancer check in for what’s new and any of the latest findings, statistics and more!

I know some weeks it seems like Breast Cancer is in the news daily and other times we don't hear enough! So here’s a little update of information being shared around the world. Keep in mind although we're not mentioning Male Breast Cancer specifically, men continue to be treated the same as women until new statistics are found.

First let’s talk about diet, something we actually have control of! Recent studies have linked High-Fat Dairy products to poorer Breast Cancer Survival.  When a person has been diagnosed with BreastCancer it appears their chance of dying from the disease years later is increased when consuming a high-fat dairy diet according to a study by Kaiser Permanente researchers.  This is one of the first studies to examine the relationship between high-fat and low-fatdairy.  The primary issue relates to the higher Estrogen levels found in the dairy products consumed because most of the milk comes from pregnant cows.

Our suggestions in addition to selecting from a low-fat dairy diet are to choose organic or grass fed products where the animals are not fed diets which include added hormones. This would make for the same options when choosing meats and poultry products as well.

While we’re on the topic of diet, new research from the University of Guelph and David Ma, a professor and one of the study’s authors shows a lifelong diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids have been found to inhibit growth of breast cancer tumors by 30%. This study which was published in the Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry may be the first to show without a doubt that omega-3’s reduce cancer risk.  In addition, now researchers from the Fox Chase Cancer Center have found that omega-3 fatty acids could be a safe and beneficial way to boost tamoxifen therapy to aid with the interference of estrogen.  Both men and women can have estrogen dominant breast cancer.  The combination of fishoil and tamoxifen were able to reduce the expression of the genes linked to tumor growth as well as spreading.

In regards to omega-3’s (healthy building blocks of good fats) diets rich with omega-3 is recommended which would include Flaxseed Oil and or seeds, Salmon, Fish Oil, Chia seeds, sardines and products obtained from animals that are grass-fed which produce higher amounts of the omega-3. Taking a nutritional supplement of omega-3 can also help when diets are limited. Omega-3 can also aid with inflammation (another creator of cancer cells), Walnuts stand out for their significant omega-3 content as well as winter squash such as pumpkins, butternut, acorn and spaghetti squash. With so many tasty options, and great ways to consume, getting more omega-3 into your diet is easy!  I like to sprinkle Flax or Chia seeds onto many of my foods, especially for breakfast! Or try a spoonful of oil in your smoothie shake or mixed in with applesauce are just more great ways, but I’m definitely a fan of the winter squash options!

I’ll follow up with more updates and findings so check back soon!

Modah Ani- I Am Thankful

Editor; Vicki Singer Wolf, Co-Founder