8 NATURAL STRATEGIES TO CREATE BREAST HEALTH
By Dr. Cathy
The best defense is a good offense! Cultivate overall wellness! We do this by accepting our divine right to be healthy and then by applying the laws of the body, mind and soul. We get into harmony with creating health and therefore decrease lifestyle risk factors. Medical research promotes that sex and age are risk factors you canʼt change. Are we to believe our sex and age are working against us and is it possible we are just cringing slaves to factors we canʼt escape? In contrast, the philosophy of Zone Healing teaches that you are a soul connected to Spirit or Nature or the Universal Intelligence that created life and runs the universe by law.
We also teach that you have an innate (internal) intelligence within you that runs your body as efficiently as possible, provided you learn to reason and donʼt interfere by entertaining thoughts and suggestions of an unreasonable nature. I donʼt believe my gender and age bracket are a risk factor, they are just factors. We know the body is a magnificent machine that will change according to the concepts deep within the subconscious mind. If we study disease then we are limited to the parameters of the study. When we focus on studying and creating health, there are no risk factors!
To quote Lorenzo Cohen, Ph.D., director of the Integrative Medicine Program at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, “The key is to create an environment that is in-hospitable to cancer”.
Our immune systems are designed to eradicate cancers as we go through life. Did you know that the body creates cancers in its many multiplex systems that you never know about? When the body is healthy, the mind sound and the soul is choosing logical, broad, lawful and positive ideas of understanding life, we literally become a reckoning force against dis-ease and therefore, dis-ease processes canʼt take hold. We are not our bodies, however, the body is designed to be a very efficient working machine and yet it is the crudest part of us! We are not our minds, as the mind is a function of the activity of our brain cells. We are souls, a consciousness that can observe itself as it goes through the process of living. The human being has the ability to have self-consciousness (ego-centric or life as it pertains to me) as well as cosmic consciousness (the observance of others needs and the bigger picture of all life).
Knowing this is your best defense. Doing the following actions is choosing to get yourself in harmony with the laws of life as well as using “Reason properly” to work with the highest we have within. These Eight Strategies have been shown to promote overall well-being and discourage abnormal cell growth, reducing the likelihood of developing breast cancer.
1. Eat a Nourishing and Balanced Diet: Learn what your body needs, not just what you like! The body needs a variety of foods to create an environment internally that will nourish healthy cells, organs, muscles, joints and ligaments. A balanced diet is key: 50% vegetables, 20% fruits, 15% healthy protein (clean animal sources, hormone, antibiotic and insecticide free), fish (wild caught is best), 10% carbohydrates; whole grains, winter squash, root vegetables (I recommend gluten free as it doesnʼt denature the lining of the digestive villi deep within the small intestine creating an unhealthy GI tract unable to digest and assimilate the foods we eat) and 5% healthy fats and oils with omega 3ʼs. Fruits and vegetables are fiber-rich and provide the identical cellular structure as the cells of our joints, ligaments, organs and even the brain. These foods are eliminative by nature as they have the fiber, bulk and nutrients to break down and cleanse the body - a must for creating the balancing act of homeostasis (the balance of breaking down and building up) called anabolism and catabolism. We are not a solid body but an ever evolving molecular structure that is constantly changing and renewing itself. Remember when medicine told us it didnʼt matter what we ate? What a joke! How can a body remain healthy if we arenʼt giving it what it needs? Many people eat junk food and congestors that are full of toxins and mucous which in turn congests the system, thus creating a perfect environment for dis-ease and Cancer! Cancer is when our cells begin to change their DNA coding and become something else. In other words they go haywire and then use our nutrition to feed themselves.
2. Watch Your Weight: Avoiding extra pounds is the most important thing you can do to minimize risk. Studies back this up: A 2009 research study conducted by Washington University in St. Louis reported that for every 5-point increase in body mass (BMI), a postmenopausal womanʼs risk of cancer jumps by 12 percent. Fat produces estrogen, one of the hormones that influence cell growth.
3. Exercise: Exercise directly prevents breast cancer because it supports acidifying the environment surrounding developing cancer cells, making it more difficult for them to survive and become malignant, as well as promoting weight loss. Exercise parameters must meet more realistic standards than the 30 minutes x 3 times a week model. Go for a minimum of 45 minutes every day or a variation of such, moving 7 days a week in a variety of activities. We were designed to move, not sit around or remain inactive. Inactivity is un-natural. Look at society today and our obesity levels over the years and the results are devastating. At one time our ancestors moved all day every day. One of the bodyʼs laws is the law of movement and we advise using it 75% of the time for creating health!
4. Sleep Well: Our tissues undergo minor wear and tear daily. Rest, sleep and recreation allows the body time for healing and repair. As we snooze our bodies produce melatonin, a hormone that promotes cell growth. Melatonin is in a reciprocal relationship with cortisol (the stress hormone which stimulates fight or flight). Decreased rest, along with improper nutrition and lack of exercise changes our chemistry, increases weight gain and stimulates chronic sympathetic response which creates an environment for dis-ease, especially cancer.
Sleeping in bright light also shows a decrease in deep REM sleep and more light in bedrooms (people who sleep with lights, TV or Computers) have a higher risk of cancer.
5. Internal Cleansing: Most people don ʼ t talk about their elimination schedule openly even with their doctors. Proper sanitation is a must if one is to create harmony within. Many are shocked at our health talks when we give out the parameters of a norma l routine of elimination. Your GI tract is capable of digesting meals within 6 - 8 hours. Using simple calculations that would equal to at least 3 to 4 bowel movements per day! (eating 3 meals a day along with snacks in - between) Eliminating once a day is a v ery low rate, leaving too many toxins and mucous production in the body. This will have a negative impact over time in producing an internally healthy environment. Eating fruits and vegetables daily and getting plenty of fluids insures the movement of the colon. Why do you think colonoscopies have become rampant? If you are not getting it out, then it ʼ s staying in and creating a perfect environment for toxic tissues!
6. Breast Feed As Long As You Can: This significantly reduces risk of breast cancer! Those who breast feed one or more children for a lifetime total of 12 to 23 months were 66% less likely to develop breast cancer than women who breast feed for less than a year or not at all. Many women are influenced to not breast feed which creates risks for themselves as well as their offspring throughout a lifetime.
7. Avoid Negative Suggestion: Science hasnʼt yet confirmed a direct link between human breast cancer and toxins like smoke, pesticides, dry cleaning agents, and bisphenol A (BP A), a component of plastic thatʼs found in polycarbonate containers and tinned food. It is wise to be aware of your environment as any heavily toxic agent could cause damage to our cells, yet being afraid of the unknowns takes an even bigger toll. We recommend you understand your body and realize in most cases it is protecting you from environmental toxins (unseen and unknown) every minute of every day. You breathe in more toxins from the time you walk from your car to work than you will ever know about and your body takes care of it for you. It wouldnʼt be wise to over-expose yourself to any substance that is knowingly toxic however putting the fearful and negative suggestions in the mind are almost a sure way to cause a negative reaction in the cellular structure of your body.
8. Manage Stress: Women who get divorced or lose a loved one were more likely to develop breast cancer. Stress interferes with aspects of immunity that play a role in eradicating cancers. When you are frazzled, or in a stressful situation, reach out to friends, family, form a support group and learn how to grieve properly. Sadness, grief and loss are a part of life. We are all born and will die so we must come to grips with the impact of loss no matter what age. Enrolling in Yoga, Tai Chi, meditation and the power of prayer all help us to harmonize ourselves with the Divine.
With knowledge and true faith we can have peace within as we truly begin to “KNOW THYSELF” and realize we are part and parcel of a greater power that is running the Universe and everything in it.
Finally, letʼs take a moment for breast screenings, mammogram, MRI and digital as well as CT scans. I can tell you that for a woman in her forties, there is data to support continuing screenings and forgoing them; both are reasonable choices. False positives are high and cause anxiety and stress as well as radiation. If youʼve been exposed to radiation of any kind more than once you may want to consider that it could be a risk factor for you to be radiated even at low rates. Design a plan for yourself. If tests are recommended for you and you feel they would be helpful, then approach it with a constructive attitude and donʼt let fearful suggestions play a major role. Decide to be your own authority and use modern developments as needed for your best benefit. Stay open and realize Medicine is dynamic and so are you and your health. New studies emerge and expert opinions change. Monitor the latest information, keep a dialogue with your doctor, and allow your screening plan to evolve. You are the only one who can be truly responsible for your health. Knowing that health is yours to have requires that you learn how to create it, which is the best place to start and will provide the best defense.