Pinktober
Have you noticed that October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month? We are swamped in a sea of pink as well meaning folk do their bit to raise funds for a cure. However, have you heard a whisper about breast cancer prevention? Prevention? Yes, according to some experts, breast cancer is preventable.
I’d love it if a cure were found, however isn’t that like shutting the gate after the horse has bolted? What can we do to reduce our risk of joining the swelling ranks of women who have this disease, and importantly how can we protect our daughters?
Like myself, and many other women, you may feel passionately about preventing cancer. If so, you can help by sharing this newsletter with those you love. If you’d like to know more, check out the resources at the end of the newsletter. And you can take direct action by investing in products that really make a difference to your health – safe alternatives are provided in this newsletter.
Yours in good health,
Lynn x
The following information is largely sourced from the recently revised book by Dr Sherrill Sellman, “What Women Must Know to Protect their Daughters from Breast Cancer”. I hope this summary will empower you to take control of your body, and your daughter’s.
The Sad Statistics
Breast cancer is now the leading cause of cancer death of women. While it was once found mostly in women in their mid-sixties, women their thirties, twenties and even teenagers are falling prey. One in nine Australian women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime. This could be me, or you, or our daughters. It is the most invasive cancer in women and has the highest death rate.1
A friend and breast cancer overcomer said to me recently, “I shouldn’t have got breast cancer – it isn’t in my family.” The truth is that if you are female, with no family history of breast cancer, and no known risk factors, you fit the profile of the typical woman with breast cancer. In fact, over 70% of breast cancers occur in women who have no immediate risk factors other than age.
Only 5-10% of breast cancers are linked to a family history
We also find girls and boys are going into puberty from a much younger age, fertility issues are increasing, and obesity has reached plague proportions.
What is going on?
