Eating a healthy diet and trimming your waistline may help reduce the risk of breast cancer.
It's estimated that one-third of cancer deaths are related to nutritional factors, including body weight.
Obesity in women contributes to 62 percent of postmenopausal breast cancer cases, said CeCe Davis, licensed dietitian and owner of Nutrition Consultants of Tulsa.
Davis encourages the consumption of plant-based diets and minimally processed foods that promote weight control to help reduce the risk of cancers.
"This, with an active lifestyle, are what we know to date to decrease incidences of breast cancer," Davis said. "That means low-fat, high-fiber diets are the main lifestyle changes."
Fruits and vegetables, whole grains and beans are good options.
"I'm not saying someone has to be a vegetarian, but include vegetarian-type meals that include beans and lots of fruits and vegetables frequently, at least three times a week," Davis said.
Kalli Campbell, director of nutrition at Cancer Treatment Centers of America, recommends getting two-thirds of your protein from a plant-based source, such as nuts, seeds and legumes.
"Also, limit the amount of fat and salt in your diet as well as alcohol," Campbell said.
One way to increase your plant-based protein intake is with soy. "We have a lot of wonderful soy-based meat patties, for instance, Boca burgers or Gardenburgers. These are absolutely delicious, but they are soy," Davis said. "So making a burger out of a Boca burger on a whole-wheat bun and carrot strips on the side would be really healthy." There is evidence that chemicals in soy may help prevent or reduce the risk of breast cancer. "In known populations with a high soy intake, women have a much lower risk of developing breast cancer," said Martin Banschbach, professor of biochemistry and nutrition with the Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences. He warned, however, that using supplements isn't the best route to take. "The problem with supplements is you're not getting everything a specific food can provide," he said. One chemical found in supplements is genistein, an isoflavone in soy that has an estrogen-like reaction in the body. "Using that as the only way of getting the chemical into your body doesn't seem like a good idea," he said. "I think it's like playing Russian roulette. The health benefit in soy is a mix of chemicals present in the food. When you extract one or two, you may not like the effect."
Focusing on a healthy diet and lifestyle early in life are also important aspects in preventing any type of cancer, Campbell said. "From birth on, literally," she said. "Start your children eating healthy and exercising. Providing that through infancy and childhood is key." Davis reiterated that dietary changes need to be accompanied by physical activities. "It's the whole package. It's our lifestyles in general -- and nutrition is one of those overwhelming causes of cancer that are external," she said. "Controlling what you can control is key here. You can't control your genetic makeup, but you can control the external factors." The Soy Debate Research and opinions on soy's effectiveness in preventing breast cancer is mixed. Right now, the major focus is on phytoestrogens, plant chemicals that have a reaction in the human body that may help protect against breast cancer. Soy is not the only plant containing phytoestrogens, but it contains the highest concentration of the chemicals. "What we're beginning to understand is a lot of diseases are diet-driven," said Martin Banschbach, professor of biochemistry and nutrition with the Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences. "Cancer in general, we now understand, has dietary components to it. We are trying to figure out what components of the diet are important in different diseases."
Genistein is one of the main phytoestrogens found in soy and is contained in many supplements. "We have some animal studies showing if that chemical only is used, it might increase the risk of breast cancer. That's in rats, not humans," Banschbach said. While there have been some concerns regarding phytoestrogens, Banschbach looks to the Asian diet where soy is consumed regularly. "There's data on people eating huge amounts of the plant's chemicals with no problems," he said. "In men, the concern is decreased sperm count. Asian men eat lots of soybeans and there is no evidence it affects their sperm count. In my opinion, the only issue is if you just use genistein." Kalli Campbell, director of nutrition at Cancer Treatment Centers of America, said those at high risk for breast cancer or who are estrogen receptor positive should limit themselves to a couple of servings of soy each week. "If you're not at a high risk for breast cancer, don't worry about it. If you've had an immediate family member, a mother, aunt, grandmother or sister with breast cancer, you'd want to limit it to two to four times a week," she said. According to a study funded by the American Institute for Cancer Research, the effects of soy may depend on what age a woman starts eating soy-based foods.
The study found that eating soy early in life may help prevent breast cancer later in life. But some analysis of the data shows that there is little to no benefit in post-menopausal women. "Asian women have a lower risk of breast cancer than American woman," Campbell said. "They have a high intake of soy products, but they eat it all their life. It's not like they were 40 and started adding soy to their diet." Mike Averill can be reached at mikeaverill@tulsaworld.com.Source: Tulsa World. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. Powered by YellowBrix.
CONTRIBUTE TO THIS STORY
