Public debate on breast cancer in the United States has centered
primarily on the best means of secondary prevention, that is, early detection.
Experts agree on the benefits of self-examination, regular breast examinations
by a health professional, and periodic mammography.
The issue of primary prevention of breast cancer depends on an understanding
of the primary causes of the disease -- causes that have proved elusive
and that remain controversial. According to Bodenheimer and Grumbach in
Understanding Health Policy-A Clinical Approach, "Multiple risk
factors for breast cancer have been defined. The most important are age
greater than 65 years, a prior diagnosis or a family history of breast
cancer, a prior diagnosis of atypical hyperplasia on breast biopsy, and
having been born in Northern Europe or North America. Less significant
risk factors include obesity, never having had children, age over 30 at
first pregnancy, and prior radiation to the thorax. In addition, women
with more years of ovulatory menstrual cycles are at greater risk, suggesting
a hormonal influence on the disease."
In spite of all these risk factors, only one-fourth of the cases of
breast cancer can be accounted for by them, making it difficult to construct
a theory of breast cancer causation on the basis of these variables. It
has therefore been suggested that unknown agents related to modern industrialization
are the primary causes of the disease, while influences like female hormones,
family history and obesity are merely secondary contributors.
Again, in Understanding Health Policy-A Clinical Approach, the
authors state, "Another view that has been inadequately studied holds that
environmental carcinogens are a possible explanation for the rise in the
incidence of breast and other cancers. From the 1940's to the 1980's industrial
production of synthetic organic chemicals rose from one billion to 400
billion pounds annually. Estrogens have been used as additives to poultry
and cattle feed, and pesticide residues are difficult to remove from agricultural
products. In a study of 14,000 women, published in the Journal of the National
Cancer Institute, breast cancer was strongly associated with exposure to
organo-chlorine insecticides, especially the principal metabolite of DDT,
which remains in the fat for years following exposure."
Reacting to concerns of Long Island women who asked why breast cancer
rates were so high on Long Island, Congress voted in June of 1993 to fund
a study to assess the possible relationship of the environment to breast
cancer. The Columbia University School of Public Health Case-Control Study
is currently under way to determine whether certain environmental contaminants
increase the risk of breast cancer among Long Island women.
The possibility that environmental toxins, dietary fat, and estrogenic
additives might be fundamental risk factors suggests that a complementary,
or alternative, medical approach utilizing effective detoxification strategies
and related lifestyle modifications might help reduce the incidence of
breast cancer.
The body continually eliminates toxic elements through an elaborate
system that involves the lungs, liver and kidneys. Women can significantly
reduce their risk of breast cancer and other chronic diseases by pursuing
a lifestyle that promotes health and by consuming foods that provide (1)
the proper combination of essential nutrients for optimal functioning of
the detoxification pathways and (2) adequate antioxidant protection against
free-radical damage.
Developing a Health-Promoting Lifestyle
Such a health-promoting lifestyle should include, among others:
1. Good nutrition, including clear air and pure water
An article published by The American Institute for Cancer Research in
1997, "Food, Nutrition and the Prevention of Cancer: A Global Perspective,"
stated that a plant-based diet and the avoidance of alcohol, together with
the maintenance of recommended body mass and regular physical activity,
may decrease the incidence of breast cancer by about 33-50%. Further research
shows that reducing acidic foods (especially meat and dairy) and alkalinizing
the system through an emphasis on fruits, vegetables and specific nutritional
products can further reduce cancer risk.
There has been considerable speculation that dietary fat may be a significant
risk factor. Although the overall evidence directly linking dietary fat
to breast cancer is inconsistent and weak, it still seems prudent for women
to reduce their fat intake as much as possible.
2. Adequate exercise
While a healthy diet provides high-quality fuel for the body's engine,
the running of that living engine is also very significant. Exercise has
many benefits: it enhances oxygenation of the blood and tissues, it helps
eliminate metabolic and other types of toxins, and it increases health
and vitality. One of the best and safest forms of exercise, which is also
easy and practical, is brisk walking. You can quite easily make walking
into a full-scale exercise for physical fitness. If you have any specific
health problems, however, be sure to ask your doctor for an exercise program
that is right for you.
3. Proper posture
Holding your body correctly facilitates proper nerve flow throughout
your system. Since the nervous system is responsible for proper communication
between every tissue and organ within the body, compromised nerve conduction
can be a factor in virtually every disturbance within the system. It can
also drain our vitality and weaken our resistance to disease. There is
evidence that chiropractic adjustments can take vertebral pressure off
nerve roots and thereby improve not only nerve transmission but immune
function as well.
4. Sufficient rest
Rest gives our minds and bodies the chance to heal and regenerate. Growth
hormone, a powerful rejuvenating hormone, is released during the first
few hours of deep sleep. Also, the body's natural mechanisms for cleansing
and detoxification occur maximally during sleep, when we are not eating
and digesting food.
5. A positive, peaceful state of mind
Because the mental and emotional pressures of most people's lives hinder
the body’s efforts to maintain health and balance, it is extremely important
to learn practical ways of managing and handling stress. The influence
of the mind on health, now referred to as "psychoneuroimmunology," is really
a modern version of an age-old concept that recognizes the vital relationship
of the mind and body in health and disease. Herbert Benson, M.D., a pioneering
researcher in mind-body medicine at Harvard University, has written extensively
on the beneficial effects of meditation, which he refers to as the "Relaxation
Response" as it relates to immune enhancement and disease.
Strategies for Women Receiving Treatment for Breast
Cancer
Once a woman receives a diagnosis of breast cancer, complementary and
alternative medical care can be made a part of her comprehensive treatment
program. The addition of detoxification diets, along with periodic fresh
fruit and vegetable juicing, can help reduce the impact of the tumor burden
and help mobilize her inherent recuperative healing mechanisms.
A woman’s requirements for nutritional supplements can be determined
by analyzing her functional parameters such as her detoxification capacity,
along with basic personal information. Such customized supplementation
can support a woman while she receives breast cancer treatment.
Finally, a woman can make use of herbal and homeopathic medicines to
further strengthen her constitutional state, increase her immune function,
and significantly lessen the side effects associated with chemical or radiation
therapy.
Of course, all complementary or alternative medical care practices that
a woman who is undergoing treatment chooses to adapt must be done with
the full knowledge of her oncologist. An increasing number of medical professionals
are recognizing the potential benefits of these approaches and the value
of incorporating them into a treatment plan.
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