Contents:
- Medical Video: These 6 Habits May Reduce Your Risk Of Breast Cancer | TIME
- Get to know more about breast cancer
- What are the symptoms of breast cancer?
- 1. Lump in the breast
- 2. Changes in breast skin
- 3. Changes in nipple condition
- 4. Lumps in the armpit
- 5. Metastatic breast cancer
- What causes breast cancer?
- 1. Smoking
- 2. Lazy moves
- 3. Love to eat food that can make good weight
- 4. Like to eat in the middle of the night
- 5. Work at night
- 6. Take birth control pills
- Are there foods that cause breast cancer?
- Pickles or very salty foods
- Alcohol
- Charred food
- Canned food
- Hot and carbonated drinks
- How to prevent the risk of breast cancer?
- 1. Take care of your weight
- 2. Limit consumption of alcohol and processed meat
- 3. Increase physical activity, at least 30 minutes of exercise a day
- 4. Don't smoke
- 5. Breastfeeding
- 6. Try another contraception
- 7. Perform a health check
Medical Video: These 6 Habits May Reduce Your Risk Of Breast Cancer | TIME
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in women in Indonesia. Breast cancer arises when cancer cells grow from breast tissue which includes lobules (mammary glands) and breast ducts, along with fat and connective tissue.
Get to know more about breast cancer
Breast cancer can occur due to several things, such as genetics, hormones, and habits that become a lifestyle. When recovering from breast cancer, doctors recommend changing your lifestyle. Yes, sometimes bad habits that become lifestyle can trigger cancer. Eating healthy foods and exercising is good to prevent weight gain, which can trigger breast cancer.
Breast cancer is the most common cancer that occurs in women, after Skin cancer. Breast cancer can be detected quickly, you can also feel the signs or characteristics of breast cancer, so you can get treatment quickly.
In some cases, there are no features of breast cancer seen at the initial stage. Although actually, the earlier breast cancer is found, the easier it is for cancer to be treated. This is why early detection is very important.
The following are some of the symptoms of breast cancer that can be determined directly. Having one or more symptoms of breast cancer below does not always indicate you have cancer. However, you are advised to see a doctor immediately if you experience some symptoms and have never undergone a previous examination.
What are the symptoms of breast cancer?
1. Lump in the breast
For many women, lump in the breast is one of the symptoms of breast cancer at the beginning. This lump is usually not painful, although some people actually feel the opposite.
As a precautionary measure, you should check the condition of your breast every month to get to know breast tissue. Thus, you will easily detect foreign and abnormal lumps.
2. Changes in breast skin
Some women find changes in the skin of their breasts. There are a number of rare breast cancer subtypes that cause skin changes, so the symptoms of skin breast cancer are often considered as ordinary infections. These changes in breast skin include:
- Irritation
- Redness
- Skin thickening
- Indentations on the network
- Skin texture like orange
3. Changes in nipple condition
Nipple conditions can also show symptoms of breast cancer. See a doctor if you find changes in nipple shape, pain, or discharge abnormal.
4. Lumps in the armpit
The breast tissue extends down to the arm, so that cancer cells can spread through the lymph nodes under the arm. Check with your doctor if you find features of breast cancer such as lumps or abnormal areas around your chest.
5. Metastatic breast cancer
Breast cancer that has spread to other parts of the body is called metastatic or breast cancer stage 4 breast cancer. Although rarely successfully cured, efforts to stop the spread of cancer must still be done.
The organs most likely to be affected by metastatic breast cancer are the brain, bones, lungs, and liver. Your symptoms will vary depending on the organ affected by the spread of cancer.
Symptoms of spread (metastasis) of bone are painful and brittle bones, while symptoms of brain metastasis include visual disturbances, convulsions, nausea, and headaches that continue to come. Meanwhile, symptoms of liver metastasis, including:
- Jaundice (on the skin and eyes)
- Rashes or itching on the skin
- Abnormal liver enzymes
- Appetite loss or nausea
Patients with pulmonary metastasis may experience chest pain, chronic cough, or difficulty breathing. If you experience these symptoms, your breast cancer may not have spread. Depression or anxiety, infection, or other diseases can cause several similar symptoms. For a more accurate diagnosis, contact your doctor for the appropriate test.
If you experience these symptoms, it does not mean you have positive breast cancer. Infection or cysts, for example, can also cause symptoms as described above. Make sure you contact your doctor if the features of the breast cancer have just appeared or have not been examined before.
What causes breast cancer?
The following are some habits that you may need to avoid because they can lead to the characteristics of breast cancer:
1. Smoking
Smoking is known to increase cancer risk, including breast cancer at a young age and in premenopausal women. In addition, smoking triggers an increased risk of complications during breast cancer treatment, such as:
- Damaging the lungs from radiation therapy
- The difficulty of postoperative healing and breast reconstruction
- The high risk of blood clots when you are on hormone therapy
2. Lazy moves
The usual physical activity can help you reduce the risk of breast cancer. You need to stay active, especially after menopause. There are many physical activities that are choices, such as walking, cleaning the house, playing with children, or gardening.
Physical activity that is less can be associated with changes in body mass index. As explained above, an increase in body weight is associated with a risk of breast cancer.
3. Love to eat food that can make good weight
A study published in the BMI Open journal, that women who change the size of their clothes every 10 years during their 20s to 60s, are at risk of breast cancer about 33 percent higher.
Increased size of skirt or pants is a sign of gaining weight. Excessive fat will have an impact on the production of hormones that interfere with cells. You need to pay attention to the following:
- Body weight rises when an adult or after 18 years has an increased risk of breast cancer after menopause
- Being overweight before menopause reduces the risk of breast cancer after menopause
- Being overweight after menopause is actually at risk for breast cancer
4. Like to eat in the middle of the night
For those of you who like to snack at night, be careful. According to a study in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers, and Prevention finding an early dinner can reduce the risk of breast cancer. Glucose the high can increase blood sugar and can trigger breast cancer
When eating during the day, glucose entering the bloodstream can still be used as energy. However, not at night, high glucose will settle and not be converted into energy, because metabolism at night must slow down.
5. Work at night
Women have jobs with alternating working hours shift, You need to be vigilant. Not only is your body's clock disturbed, you will also feel tired and sleep deprived. The most severe impact is that you can risk the appearance of breast cancer characteristics in your body.
A study revealed that women who have working hours at night are more susceptible to breast cancer than women who do not work at night.
The researchers assume this is caused by hormones, one of which is the hormone melantonin, which is disrupted by your nighttime sleep changes. The low melantonin hormone is often found in patients who have breast cancer.
6. Take birth control pills
Estrogen in contraceptive pills (KB) can indeed prevent pregnancy, but this birth control pill can stimulate breast cells. Excessive hormone doses can increase the risk of breast cancer.
Based on research published in the Cancer Research in 2014, the Medical Daily quoted contraception (such as birth control pills) by women aged 20 to 49 years could increase the risk of developing breast cancer. However, you do not necessarily become hesitant to join a family planning program, there are other contraceptives. In addition, birth control pills are still safe if taken with a low dose of about 0.02 mg.
Are there foods that cause breast cancer?
There are several foods that can trigger cancer in the body. One of them is the burning process. Foods that cause breast cancer contain chemicals, namely heterocyclic amines (HCAs) and polycyclic hydrocarbons (PAHs) that are formed due to the roasting process and the combustion of these food ingredients. Both of these chemicals increase the risk of cancer because they can cause changes in DNA in the body, and are mutagenic.
Actually, both types of chemicals are formed by themselves when meat is cooked at very high temperatures and directly exposed to fire. HCAs are formed from amino acids, glucose, and creatine found in cow, chicken, or goat muscles. If the meat is burned it will react to high temperatures, which is also the risk of breast cancer-causing foods that you should avoid.
While PAHs are formed when fat from meat is exposed to fire directly without any intermediaries. In addition to foods that are burned or baked, HCAs are not found in large amounts in food. Whereas PAHs can be found in other scorched foods, in cigarette smoke, and in car exhaust fumes.
Here are other breast cancer-causing foods that you must reduce and avoid:
Pickles or very salty foods
High intake of salted fish, pickled vegetables, and salty snacks associated with breast cancer. Because the food causes breast cancer there are cancer carcinogens that are quite a lot in it. How better you reduce eating these foods to maintain your health.
Alcohol
Alcoholic beverages and beer have long been established as drinks that can increase the risk of oral, colorectal and breast cancer. Limit your intake of alcoholic drinks, and it's better if you don't consume them at all.
Charred food
Scorched foods, such as blackened vegetables or meat because they are cooked over time, can be a food that causes breast cancer. High heat in dishes, especially animal meat, can cause the destruction of heterocyclic DNA of this substance is a substance that can trigger cancer, including breast cancer. Good, cook meat, vegetables and other cooking ingredients at low temperatures to avoid scorching.
Canned food
According to the Environmental Research Journal study, foods that cause breast cancer can be found in canned foods coated with bisphenol-A (BPA). BPA is a chemical that has been shown to damage DNA in the body.
BPA can increase your risk of breast cancer, other cancers and type 2 diabetes. If you shop canned foods, make sure the cans are clearly labeled "BPA Free", and limit your consumption of canned foods, at least one can for 1 week.
Hot and carbonated drinks
According to American Cancer Societyhot drinks like coffee or tea can be drinks and foods that cause breast cancer. This is because the effect of heat on drinks that are over 65 degrees Celsius can cause the effects of cancer-causing carcinogens in the body.
Esophageal cancer is one of the most common cancers due to hot drinks. Even so, it does not rule out the possibility that the cause of breast cancer can also be caused by a hobby of drinking hot drinks.
How to prevent the risk of breast cancer?
Here are some ways and steps to healthy life that you can do to reduce your risk of breast cancer:
1. Take care of your weight
Being overweight or obese can increase your risk of developing breast cancer. Fat that accumulates in the body, especially in the stomach, can produce more estrogen which can increase the risk of breast cancer.
In addition, being overweight is also related to other types of cancer, such as prostate cancer, lung, intestine, and kidney. So, if you are overweight, try starting now to lose your weight. Start changing your eating habits by eating your healthy food and exercising regularly.
2. Limit consumption of alcohol and processed meat
By eating nutritious foods, you can reduce your risk of cancer. Try to eat vegetables and fruits every day. Choose foods that contain little fat and calories. This is done to avoid you from obesity.
In addition, limit consumption of processed meat. A report from the WHO cancer agency, the International Agency for Research on Cancer states that large amounts of processed meat consumption can increase the risk of certain types of cancer. If you like to drink alcohol, you should limit or even stop the habit from now on.
3. Increase physical activity, at least 30 minutes of exercise a day
Regular exercise, in addition to getting a normal weight, is also done to reduce the risk of cancer, especially breast cancer. When many fat cells accumulate in the body, additional estrogen will be produced. Breast cancer cells that are exposed to estrogen can increase the risk of breast cancer.
You are advised to exercise for at least 150 minutes per week or 30 minutes per day. Not only that, you are also advised to be active every day. Reduce sedentary activities, such as sitting, lying down, watching television, playing the game computers, and so on.
4. Don't smoke
Smoking is associated with various types of cancer, such as lung, mouth, throat, bladder, breast cancer cervix (cervix)and kidneys. In fact, if you are not a smoker, you are also still at risk for lung cancer from exposure to cigarette smoke.
Therefore, if you are a smoker, stop smoking from now on. And if you are not a smoker, then stay away from cigarette smoke. By avoiding cigarettes, not only do you avoid the risk of cancer, you also avoid the risk of heart disease and stroke.
5. Breastfeeding
If you have just given birth, try to give exclusive milk to your baby. Exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months can help reduce the risk of breast cancer. In addition, breastfeeding is also very beneficial for your baby's health.
6. Try another contraception
The use of birth control pills, especially if you are over 35 years old, can increase your risk of developing breast cancer. This risk will disappear when you stop using birth control pills. If you have offspring of breast cancer, you should choose other contraceptives to prevent pregnancy, such as condoms, for example.
7. Perform a health check
To find out how much your cancer risks, it's a good idea to see your doctor. Your doctor will see how much you risk from your family history of breast cancer, who is suffering and at what age. You might need to do some tests, such as mammogram. Women aged 40 years or older must screen mammograms every year.
