More fibre can help beat breast cancer

OCTOBER marks Breast Cancer Awareness Month, which aims to increase knowledge of how we can help beat one of the most common cancers in women. Here are some everyday lifestyle changes that women can make.

Fill up on fibre A large-scale American study looking at 90,534 women found that high intake of fibre during adolescence, especially from fruit and vegetables, helps to reduce the risk of developing premenopausal breast cancer.

The research found that young women who ate more fibre in early adulthood had a 12 to 19% lower risk of developing breast cancer than those who ate much less or no dietary fibre.

High fibre intake during teenage years was also found to reduce the overall risk of breast cancer by 16% and cut the risk of premenopausal breast cancer by 24%.

Foods with the highest levels of fibre include kidney beans, lentils, wholegrain cereals, fruit and green vegetables.

Increase fruit intake A large-scale US study published in The BMJ found that high consumption of fruit during adolescence – 2.9 servings per day – was associated with a 25% lower risk of breast cancer in middle age, compared to a low consumption of fruit (0.5 servings per day).

In addition, the results also suggested that two servings per week of apples, bananas and grapes during adolescence was significantly associated with a reduced breast cancer risk, as was two servings per week of oranges and kale during early adulthood.

Cut down on saturated fat US research published last year found that consuming large amounts of saturated ‘bad’ fat or low amounts of mono- and polyunsaturated ‘good’ fats during adolescence is linked to higher breast density in young adulthood, a strong risk factor for breast cancer.

Saturated ‘bad’ fats are commonly found in meat and dairy products like fatty meats, cheese and butter, while nuts, olive oil and avocado are among common sources of monounsaturated ‘good’ fats. – AFP-Relaxnews