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10 Effective Ways to Reduce Your Chances of Breast Cancer

• Posted by Monica Quinn October 27, 2022 Filed in Health #health  #Cancer  #breast cancer  6 views
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  Kelly Preston, the actress, and John Travolta's wife has diedin 2020. She was 57 years old. "It is with great sadness that I inform you that my beautiful wife Kelly has lost her two-year battle with breast cancer," Travolta wrote on Instagram. "She fought a valiant battle with the love and support of so many."

  Inspired by that battle, health professionals share their best breast cancer-fighting tips. Read on to arm yourself and stay healthy for the rest of your life.

  1. Limit Your Alcohol Consumption and Give Up Smoking

  While being female genetically is the most important risk factor for breast cancer, your lifestyle also plays a significant role. There is a lot of information available about other risk factors, and as a result, there are things that women (and men) can do to lower their risk of breast cancer. Multiple studies have shown that excessive alcohol consumption and smoking increase risk, according to doctors. Aside from lowering your risk of breast cancer, quitting alcohol has numerous other advantages.

  2. Try Avoiding Sweets

  Diet can play an important role both before and after surgery, with experts advising people at risk of breast cancer or those with a cancer diagnosis to limit or eliminate sugar from their diet.

  3. Keep a Healthy Weight

  Maintaining a healthy weight can also significantly reduce your risk of developing breast cancer. Women with a BMI of more than 30 kilograms per square meter are also at a higher risk of developing breast cancer.

  4. Exercise While You're Healthy

  Staying active is essential for lowering your chances of being diagnosed with breast cancer. With or without a family history of breast cancer, it is critical to reducing risk factors such as a sedentary lifestyle.

  5. Limit Hormone Therapy Whenever Possible

  Progesterone-based therapies used to treat menopausal symptoms may raise your risk of cancer. Menopausal hormone therapy raises the risk of developing breast cancer. If you must take hormones to treat menopausal symptoms, avoid progesterone-containing products and limit your use to three years. Of course, you should always consult your doctor before beginning or discontinuing any medication.

  6. Limit Your Radiation Exposure

  Environmental radiation may increase your risk of developing breast cancer, and those whose jobs expose them to it, from radiology technicians to miners to pilots, should do everything they can to limit their exposure.

  7. Opt for the Day Shift Whenever Possible

  While we cannot always choose our working hours, night shift work may increase your chances of being diagnosed with breast cancer. In fact, according to a study published in the May 2012 issue of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, women in the Danish military who worked the night shift were up to 40% more likely to develop breast cancer than those who did not.

  8. Talk to Your Doc Early if You Have a Family History of the Disease

  If you have a family history, you should get tested and discuss the results with your doctor to see if monitoring or proactive preventive surgery is the best option.

  9. Get Screened Regularly

  While there are many lifestyle changes you can make to lower your risk, regular screenings are your best option for detection. Regular mammograms on a doctor-recommended schedule—which may mean starting before the age of 40—are especially important for women with a family history of breast cancer. Although these risk factors may not be modifiable, evidence suggests that these women could reduce their risk of developing the metastatic disease by being screened on a regular basis.

  10. Your Treatment Team May Be Bigger Than You Expected

  Prepare to be in close quarters with a large group of medical professionals. Breast cancer treatment is a collaborative effort involving the breast surgeon, radiologist, pathologist, medical oncologist, and radiation oncologist. You may also need to work with a plastic surgeon.