Every woman has a significant risk of developing breast cancer, and we make every effort to reduce that risk and prevent this potentially fatal condition. However, occasionally we unintentionally damage our own health and raise the risk of contracting diseases like breast cancer, among others.
In a study done by a group of researchers at Kaiser Permanente, it was discovered that women with breast cancer who had a diet high in full-fat dairy had a higher probability of dying than those who consumed a diet high in low-fat dairy.
The growth of breast cells is stimulated by the hormone estrogen, and
this includes the growth of hormone-receptor-positive breast cancer.
Estrogen is produced and stored in fat cells. The majority of experts
claim that dairy products sold in the United States and other Western
countries contain an increased amount of estrogen and progesterone
because the milk is sometimes comes from pregnant cows. If we follow
this logic it’s safe to assume that low-fat dairy products contain lower
levels of estrogen and progesterone because they’re stripped from most
of the fat.
That’s why it’s advisable for women diagnosed with breast cancer to
consume less full-fat dairy products and more low-fat ones, and this is
especially important for those with hormone-receptor-positive breast
cancer.
Following the abovementioned claims, experts wanted to prove if
consuming full-fat dairy products really increases the possibility of
breast cancer reappearance, as well as the possibility of dying from
breast cancer. Here are the full-fat products the study included:
- whole milk
- condensed or evaporated milk
- pudding
- ice cream
- custard
- flan
- cheese
- yogurt
- butter
The participants in the study were monitored over the course of 12 years and the results were rather shocking.
The study revealed that the subjects who consumed one or more servings
of full-fat dairy products every day had a 64% higher chance of dying
from any factor and a 49% higher chance of dying from breast cancer
compared to the subjects who consumed low-fat dairy products or less
servings of full-fat dairy product a day.
Even though these results are quite shocking we need to consider a few
other things before we jump into conclusions. The study reveals a
connection between full-fat dairy products and fatal breast cancer
outcomes, however it doesn’t prove that the one necessarily leads to the
other. More tests, experiments and researches are needed in order to
discover the real connection between the two.
Until more information on the subject is available, it’s advisable for
every patient diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer to do everything
he can to reduce the risk of reappearance and increase the possibility
of survival. Here are just a few advices they should follow in order to
improve their overall state:
- start a healthy eating regimen, eliminating processed foods and sugar
- eliminate alcohol
- balance your body weight
- work out regularly
- quit smoking
- take all the medications your doctors prescribed in order to prevent reoccurrence.