Balance Your Diet
Your food choices may help cut your odds of having breast cancer, though scientists are doing more research to learn how diet affects the disease.
Focus on vegetables, fruits, beans, and whole grains, which should make up two-thirds of your plate.
Reserve the other third for lean protein such as poultry or fish. More than 5 cups a day of plant-based fare is a good guideline.
Limit Alcohol
If you’re a woman who has two or three servings a day of wine, beer, or liquor, your risk is 20% higher than one who doesn’t drink at all.
Experts say if you want to imbibe, have no more than one drink a day. That only slightly raises your chances of getting breast cancer.
Don’t Smoke
Tobacco use is linked to a higher risk of breast cancer, especially in younger women who haven’t gone through menopause.
How much you smoke, the age when you started, and how long you continue all affect how likely you are to get the disease. If you’re a smoker, ask your health care provider about ways to help you quit.
Know Your Tissue Type
The makeup of all breasts is different. If yours have less fatty flesh and more milk glands and supportive tissue, they’re called “dense.” That can raise your breast cancer risk and make abnormal cells harder to spot on scans.
Mammograms are one way to measure your tissue type. If you have dense breasts, take other steps to lower your odds for breast cancer. You may need to get screened more often or use more advanced screening tests.
Get Your Workouts In
Regular physical activity can lower your breast cancer risk. Experts say you should get either 150 minutes of moderate exercise or 75 minutes of harder, vigorous workouts over the course of a week. You can also do a bit of both …
