Breast Cancer Prevention: What Can Women Do?

Good news on the breast cancer front: deaths from the disease are declining thanks to early detection and better treatment. And, experts are discovering that certain lifestyle choices can lower a woman's risk of developing this potentially deadly disease.

Here are five strategies that may offer protection:

Tie on Your Gym Shoes

Many studies conclude that an active lifestyle will reduce a woman's risk of breast cancer. Some research shows that it's the total amount of exercise a woman gets in her lifetime that matters. But even inactive women who don't start exercising until they're older seem to lower their risk.

Researchers aren't exactly sure how physical activity reduces risk. Some think that exercise reduces the amount of fat in a woman's body. Fat cells produce the hormone estrogen, which may stimulate the growth of breast cancer cells.

Exercise also seems to lower insulin. This hormone may cause the growth of breast cancer cells. Another theory is that exercise helps boost a woman's immune system, helping her ward off disease.

If you're inactive, start with smaller amounts of exercise and gradually build up to at least 30 minutes on most days of the week. You'll be more likely to stick to exercise if you choose activities you enjoy. Examples of moderate activities range from brisk walking and dancing to raking leaves and mopping floors.

Women who are already active may want to aim for longer and harder workouts. Some studies show that the more exercise women get—and the more vigorous—the lower their risk of breast cancer. For instance, women age 40 and younger who averaged at least four hours a week of jogging or other aerobic exercise cut their risk by 50% compared to less active women.

Watch Your Weight

Women who gain weight as they get older have a higher risk of breast cancer after menopause. Overweight women are exposed to more estrogen than lean women are. Estrogen is linked to the growth of breast cancer.

How much of a weight gain will increase your risk? One study found that women who gained 11 to 22 pounds after age 18 had an 18% higher risk of breast cancer after menopause than women who only gained four to five pounds. This risk jumped to 40% for women who gained 44 to 55 pounds.

Consider What You Eat

Research is uncovering several dietary choices that could prove protective.

Watch your fat intake. Experts have not yet determined whether a high-fat diet plays a role in breast cancer. Some studies say yes; others say no. Even so, experts strongly advise keeping your total fat intake below 30% of total calories. This can protect against heart disease and may reduce your risk of breast and other cancers.

The type of fats you choose may affect your breast cancer risk, as well. Specifically, diets high in monounsaturated fats, such as olive oil, may help protect against this disease. So, too, may omega-3 fatty acids, which are the type of fat found in salmon and other fatty fish.

Add foods high in phytoestrogens. Chemicals called phytoestrogens, found in soy and other foods, seem to block the action of the hormone estrogen that fuels breast cancer. In one study, Asian-American women who ate soy products more than 120 times a year had a 30% lower risk of breast cancer than women who ate soy less than 12 times a year.

If you don't like tofu, soymilk, or other soy products, load up on other healthy foods that contain phytoestrogens. These include dried beans, flax seeds, and whole grains.

Choose high-fiber foods. When women digest fibrous foods, their bodies also get rid of estrogen. Over time, a high-fiber diet may lower a woman's exposure to this hormone.

High-fiber choices include:

oatmeal or other whole-grain cereals
whole-grain pastas
brown rice
breads made from 100% whole wheat
oat and wheat bran
popcorn
whole fruits and vegetables—with the skin.

Remember your five servings of fruits and vegetables each day. Some studies show that women who eat lots fruits and vegetables have a lower rate of breast cancer. But other studies fail to support this.

Experts suspect that only certain fruits and vegetables are protective against breast cancer. But until they know which ones, they advise women to fill up on a wide variety of these nutrient-packed foods.

Consider the Risks of Alcohol

One report found that having one alcoholic drink a day increased a woman's lifetime risk of breast cancer by 11%, compared with nondrinkers. Two or three drinks per day may increase breast cancer risk by 30 to 40%.

The type of alcohol a woman drinks doesn't seem to affect these predictions.

Why does alcohol boost a woman's risk? One theory is that alcohol increases the amount of estrogen in a woman's body. Some research suggests that alcohol users who take hormone replacement therapy (HRT) have a higher risk of breast cancer than those who don't take HRT.

Besides watching their alcohol intake, women who drink should eat plenty of foods high in folate, such as leafy greens, citrus fruits, and whole grains. Alcohol reduces the level of folate in a woman's body, which may further increase her risk of breast cancer.

Consider Drug Therapy and Genetic Testing, if Your Risk is Very High

Women who face a very high risk of breast cancer may want to discuss drug therapy and genetic testing with their doctor. This includes women who have a history of breast disease or have a strong family history of breast cancer.

Genetic testing helps tell you whether you have inherited a gene that increases your risk of the disease. Not everyone with a flawed breast cancer gene develops cancer.

However, test results may help in making medical and lifestyle choices. For instance, a woman's doctor may recommend drug therapy or more frequent screenings if she carries an altered gene.

Drugs are now available that can help reduce breast cancer risk in high-risk women, including tamoxifen. Your doctor can help you weigh the pros and cons of taking these drugs. While they may help protect against breast cancer risk, they may increase your risk of other health problems, including stroke.

Don't Forget About Screenings

Breast cancer screening is critical to catching this disease early. The earlier it's caught, the more likely treatment will be effective.

Your doctor can help you decide how often to perform breast self-exams and undergo clinical breast exams.

The National Cancer Institute recommends that women who are in their 40s or older begin having regular screening mammograms every one to two years. However, you should talk to your own doctor about when and how often to have mammograms, based on your own risk factors. If you are at an increased risk for the disease, your doctor may recommend earlier and/or more frequent screening.