Why do we strap on our supportive bras and pull on our moisture wicking workout wear in the early hours of the morning or the end of a long workday? Why do we ride, walk, run, or swim to the accelerated rhythm of our hearts and lungs? Because we want to look good, feel better, and live longer. Reason enough, but new studies show that exercise may also have a significant impact on certain types of breast cancer.
My reasons for exercising became more specific when my mom was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer after 12 years of remission. When she was diagnosed with breast cancer again, I started wondering if I was doing enough to protect myself.
I soon discovered that eighty percent of all breast cancers are fueled by estrogen and exercise is a natural way to reduce your estrogen levels, as well as reducing other hormones and growth factors that can cause breast cells to turn into cancer. This research is great news! I am physically active which I now know is a great benefit in preventing breast cancer, but it is also a relief to know that it is not too late for women to reap the benefits of exercise when battling breast cancer.
According to Brian Sprague, research assistant at UWCCC," A woman's hormone levels naturally fluctuate throughout her life, and we have found that exercise likely offers protection against breast cancer regardless of a woman's stage in life. The take-home message for women should be that it is never too late to begin exercising."
Dr. Michelle Holmes, of Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, reports in her research that breast cancer survivors who spent three to five hours each week (or about half an hour a day) doing exercise had the best survival rates.
Now step away from the computer and go get some exercise, because I want all of you to be healthy and happy!
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