A NEW APPROACH TO BREAST CANCER PREVENTION
October is breast cancer awareness month. Everywhere you look you’ll see pink. Pink ribbons, pink labels, pink products, pink stickers and pink jars saying, “help raise awareness” or “support the cure”. 🎀
You can’t miss it!
While the sentiment behind the campaign feels warm and thoughtful, most of the strategy designed to “‘support" breast cancer survivors and raise awareness is not at all helpful.
Let’s start with the pink washing. Pink washing: A company or organization that claims to care about breast cancer by promoting a pink ribbon product, but at the same time produces, manufactures and/or sells products that are linked to the disease. Due to pink washing, products adorned with pink ribbons (and pink things in general) have saturated the market in October in the name of breast cancer awareness. Sadly, in most cases, the only one benefiting from the sales of pink merchandise is the seller, as many of these campaigns donate very little to proceeds.
Second, raising awareness isn’t getting us very far. Breast cancer rates have gone up right along with awareness. Most are aware that breast cancer is a huge issue. We need TRUTH and REALITY! We need to change the conversation from awareness to PREVENTION and we need to stop thinking that screening and early detection is enough. It’s not! Breast cancer screening is at an all-time high, but breast cancer rates continue to rise.
Why? We’re missing the mark!
Screening and/or early detection does not equal cure or prevention. Raising awareness and putting pink labels on as many products as possible does very little to prevent or address the root cause. It’s time to stop giving money to organizations that are selling products to people that are linked to cancer. It’s time for a different conversation. Perhaps a more uncomfortable one.
The truth is, we need to stop doing the things that we know cause cancer and turning a blind eye and waiting for the cure. The cure is prevention. And the responsibility is ours.
“We have been led to believe that if someone in your family has had breast or ovarian cancer, you will too. Genetic testing for everything under the sun has become commonplace and women are voluntarily removing their healthy breasts and ovaries in an attempt to “save themselves.” This is the reason why prophylactic removal of healthy breasts has increased by 200% over the past 5 years or so! While there are some gene mutations that, if triggered, could possibly result in those genes expressing toward cancer, the reality is that genetics cause less than 10 percent of all diseases. The science of Epigenetics shows that most health problems stem from misperceptions we have learned or acquired, and anyone can change their genetic “blueprint” with their consciousness.” @drchristianenorthrup
As women, we have been conditioned to believe that our breasts are two malignant lesions sitting on our chests about to kill us at any moment. I prefer not to buy into the cultural fear. Nothing compromises the immune system faster than FEAR. I prefer to focus on how I can create breast health daily and October is the perfect reminder.
{Disclaimer: I’m not saying you shouldn’t screen for breast cancer, but I am saying it’s time for a different approach.
Here are my top breast cancer preventing tips:
1. Exercise regularly. Daily movement is one of the best ways to eliminate the toxins that are linked to breast cancer. Strength training is particularly protective against breast cancer. No matter what type of exercise you do, find a way to move and sweat daily.
2. Get quality sleep. Nothing is better for metabolizing stress hormones and bolstering the immune system than deep, reparative sleep. 10-15 minutes of morning sunlight is essential for deep sleep.
3. Supplement smart. Optimizing vitamin D levels and supporting the liver is crucial.
4. Test your hormones. This is KEY! A hormone test will reveal whether the body is getting rid the “bad” estrogens linked to breast cancer. I highly recommend taking a DUTCH hormone test annually as it is one of the most important preventative measures you can take when it comes to breast cancer.
5. Starve cancer cells. Both sugar and alcohol feed cancer cells. Studies show that consuming either on a regular basis significantly increases risk for breast cancer.
6. Use food as medicine. Here is a list of foods that are particularly protective against breast cancer. BROCOLI SPROUTS, CRUCIFEROUS VEGGIES, MATCHA and GREEN TEA, BEETS, BERRIES, CHAGA MUSHROOMS, SWEET POTATOES, CARROTS, WILD SALMON, OLIVE OIL, TURMERIC, and GINGER.
7. Practice self-love + acceptance. This should be NUMBER ONE! Loving yourself and accepting yourself exactly the way you are (while working on becoming better) is one of the most powerful health enhancing and cancer preventing tips.
8. Mindset/emotional health. Negative thoughts and emotions cause “dis-ease” within the body, while positive ones do the opposite and can make you well. Unfortunately, most spend a large portion of their day experiencing negative emotions like, complaining, judging others, people pleasing, repressing true feelings and feeling deeply inadequate and/or like they are not enough. That “program” will eventually lead to “dis-ease”. How can you change the program? How can you change the narrative? Check out @petercroneofficial, The Mind Architect. He can help you! 😊
Take care of yourself, ladies! There’s so so much we can do 😊