30 Tips to Prevent Breast Cancer

Every year, October rolls around, and the pinkwashing begins. All the companies cover their labels in pink, claim to support the cause, and citizens eat it up, failing to realize these same products are what's causing breast cancer to begin with.

Each year in the United States, about 264,000 breast cancer cases are diagnosed in women. Contrary to popular belief, men can also get breast cancer; although less common, men account for about 2,400 breast cancer cases annually (1). Breast cancer is an illness in which cells in the breast grow uncontrollably. Different types of breast cancer can form in different parts of the breast and spread outside the breast through blood vessels and lymph vessels. When breast cancer spreads to other body parts, it is said to have metastasized.

The two most common types of breast cancer include (2):

• Invasive ductal carcinoma. The cancer cells begin in the ducts and then grow outside the ducts into other parts of the breast tissue. Invasive cancer cells can also spread, or metastasize, to other parts of the body.

• Invasive lobular carcinoma. Cancer cells begin in the lobules and then spread from the lobules to the breast tissues that are close by. These invasive cancer cells can also apply to other parts of the body.

Symptoms and warning signs of breast cancer include:

• New lump in the breast or underarm (armpit)

• Thickening or swelling of part of the breast

• Irritation or dimpling of breast skin

• Redness or flaky skin in the nipple area or the breast

• Pulling in of the nipple or pain in the nipple area

• Nipple discharge other than breast milk, including blood

• Any change in the size or the shape of the breast

• Pain in any area of the breast (3)

Mammography Vs. Thermography What is Pinkwashing? 30 Tips to Prevent Breast Cancer

Breast Cancer Prevention Dietary Supplements

Mammography Vs. Thermography

A mammogram is an X-ray picture of the breast used for diagnostic purposes. Doctors use a mammogram to look for early signs of breast cancer. Per the CDC, regular mammograms are the best tests doctors have to find breast cancer early, sometimes up to three years before it can be felt (4)–but is it?

Let's state the facts: mammograms are unnecessary radiation exposure that can cause cancer in frequently tested people (5). Additionally, there is the risk of false negatives and false positives. Normal breast tissue can hide breast cancer and not appear on a mammogram. Contrarily, mammograms can falsely identify an abnormality that looks like cancer but is actually normal (6).

According to one study:

“Mammography screening has been promoted to the public with three simple promises that all appear to be wrong: It saves lives and breasts by catching the cancers early. Screening does not seem to make the women live longer; it increases mastectomies; and cancers are not caught early, they are caught very late. They are also caught in too great numbers. There is so much overdiagnosis that the best thing a women can do to lower her risk of becoming a breast cancer patient is to avoid going to screening, which will lower her risk by one-third (7).”

Fun fact: The European Breast Guidelines recommend against annual mammography screenings (8).

MedicalNewsToday will tell you the potential benefits of early detection outweigh the concerns of exposure and false positives (9). Still, they fail to mention there is another option that doesn't expose you to unnecessary radiation–thermography.

Thermography is an excellent alternative to mammography screenings. Thermography is a test that uses an infrared camera to detect heat patterns and blood flow in body tissues. It can be used to detect breast cancer, and it can do so without causing discomfort or pain to the recipient.

Thermography benefits women who may be concerned about developing breast cancer as it doesn't require a physical tumor to be present to detect minute changes in the breast, which mammograms and physical exams do.

Thermography will actually detect the heat produced by increased blood vessel circulation and metabolic changes associated with a tumor's genesis and growth. That's right; it detects the changes in your breast before the tumor has time to grow (10)!

What is Pinkwashing?

Pinkwashing is the deceitful vision of supporting "awareness" of carcinogenic, cancer-causing products like processed foods, fragrances, and endocrine disruptors. At the same time, these companies claim to support breast cancer awareness, despite being the cause of it and profiting from it further. These companies sell breast cancer awareness products via "cause marketing" despite the common knowledge that their products cause the illness they're spreading awareness of.

"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 containing chemicals that are linked to the disease (11)."

The following industries have been called out for pinkwashing:

• Susan G. Komen

• Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

• The Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

• The National Cancer Institute (NCI)

• The Department of Justice (DOJ)

• 3M

• Ford Motor Company

• Estée Lauder

• Bee Sweet Citrus

• Wonderful Citrus

• Personal Care Products Council

• The American Cancer Society

• Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC)

• Eli Lilly

• Yoplait (12)

So what can we do instead of supporting these companies? We can spread the word and adopt lifestyle changes from the 30 tips to prevent breast cancer list that I composed below.

30 Tips to Prevent Breast Cancer

In my humble opinion, the most crucial aspect of breast cancer awareness is understanding how to prevent it. Many will think you can't prevent it, but I have composed a list with dozens of studies to prove otherwise. These are my tips for preventing breast cancer:

1. Know Your Body

Regularly examining your breasts on your own can be an important way to find breast cancer early, when it’s more likely to be treated successfully. While no single test can detect all breast cancers early, it’s believed that performing breast self-exam in combination with other screening methods can increase the odds of early detection.

How to examine your breasts (13):

Step 1: Begin by looking at your breasts in the mirror with your shoulders straight and your arms on your hips.

Here's what you should look for:

• Breasts that are their usual size, shape, and color.

• Breasts that are evenly shaped without visible distortion or swelling.

If you see any of the following changes, bring them to your doctor's attention:

• Dimpling, puckering or bulging of the skin.

• A nipple that has changed position or an inverted nipple (pushed inward instead of sticking out).

• Redness, soreness, rash, or swelling.

Step 2: Now, raise your arms and look for the same changes.

Step 3: While you're in the mirror, look for any signs of fluid coming out of one or both nipples (this could be a watery, milky, or yellow fluid or blood).