Think Prevention when you see Pink
Think Prevention when you see Pink
Think PREVENTION when you see Pink Ribbons: One simple step for Breast Cancer Prevention
It’s October, and that brings awareness of many things: cooler weather, pumpkin spice flavoring everything near your taste buds, and of course, changing colors. I’m not talking about fall leaves though, I’m talking about suddenly being inundated with PINK. It’s everywhere, even on those burly NFL fellas’ feet.
While so much emphasis is placed on screening and early detection of breast cancer during October for Breast Cancer Awareness Month, it’s sometimes difficult for me to see pink. Breast cancer is the number one killer of American women. Most likely you know someone affected by it in some way. I’ve had more than one friend, an aunt and my dear grandmother all face down the dreaded diagnosis. Thankfully, they are all still with us.
But I won’t be buying any pink ribbons. It’s not because I don’t want to find a cure; that would be amazing and I do hope one is found soon! My concern is that we are too focused on the cure, when we have so many tools we can focus on to PREVENT this from killing any more of our sisters, wives, mothers, grandmothers and friends. According to an interview with Dr. Christiane Northrup I recently listened to, breast cancer is severely over diagnosed because of our focus on screenings with mammograms. Dr. Northrup is a practicing OB/GYN focused on women’s health and she stated that in 2008 alone, more than 70,000 women faced an unnecessary breast cancer diagnosis.
Yes, I like to focus on prevention. And there may be more things you can do than your realize that will help reduce your risk for breast cancer. I’m not talking so called preventive surgery; there are many simple lifestyle choices you can make to limit your risks. If you’ve been reading along with our blog and have seen our Magnificent 7 principles, you ought to have a good start. All of Dr. Northrups tips fall into one of those categories of Think Right, Eat Right, Drink Right, Move Right, Talk Right, Poop Right and Sleep Right.
What’s my top tip for breast cancer prevention? Optimize your Vitamin D levels! It’s one of Dr. Northrup’s tips, and always one of my best suggestions for everyone. There’s a big difference between being in an acceptable or safe level and optimizing your health though, so be sure to ask for actual results when you get tested. Ideally, I like to see blood levels in the range of 60-70ng/ml. Too often, I see people taking supplemental vitamin D in insufficient levels. Your needs will vary depending on personal habits, body composition and more. I recommend everyone get tested and optimize vitamin D levels, and this is a great time of year to do it if you live in the Northern hemisphere, as our sunlight is no longer strong enough for our bodies to manufacture it on our own.
See PINK? Think PREVENTION! You can control most of your health with your lifestyle. Optimizing your Vitamin D levels is probably the simplest step you can take to take charge of your health and help prevent breast cancer. Check this out for more tips from Dr. Northrup and to watch the interview with her I mentioned.
Check out Dr. Christiane Northrup’s take on “pinkwashing” here: http://www.drnorthrup.com/stop-pinkwashing-start-encouraging-breast-health/
And excerpts from the interview with Dr. Northrup, and her top ten tips to prevent cancer here. http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/04/21/breast-health-tips.aspx
Rachel Seltzner is a Naturopath on a mission to make the world a better place by helping others feel their best! She enjoys writing about healthy lifestyles, holistic nutrition and nature. When not in the office or playing ringmaster to her 3 kids, dog and chickens, she manages to do some gardening, enjoys camping and living “wildly grounded.” Read more from her at http://www.naturallyrach.com or connect with her at www.facebook.com/naturallyrach.
