breast cancer prevention: steps to reduce your risk
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in the UK with one woman diagnosed every 10 minutes. Back in late 2022, I was one of them.
There's no way to guarantee you won't get cancer, but there are things you can do to reduce your risk, and I personally feel that there's not enough information and not enough emphasis on controlling the factors that we can when it comes to cancer and our health.
It'll come to no surprise to you that having a healthy lifestyle is one of the best things you can do to reduce your risk of developing breast cancer:
- maintaining a healthy weight
- eating a balanced, nutritious diet that isn't full of fatty, salty, processed food or heaps of sugar
- low amounts of alcohol
- plenty of exercise, whether thats walking, the gym, climbing, cycling or anything else, just get that heart rate up!
Other recommendations for reducing the risk of breast cancer from the Cancer Research UK website including having children, breastfeeding, and limiting some medicines such as aspiring and anti-inflammatories.
Since my diagnosis and treatment, my main focus has been on preventative care and improving my general health and wellbeing as much as possible. In the photo on the left I was 6-months post cancer treatment and still carrying a lot of the excess weight I'd had before and during my recovery. Fast-forward 15 months later and I:
- am around 35lbs lighter
- rarely drink alcohol, only normally on special occasions and even then, nowhere near the amount I would have previously drunk
- follow a largely mediterranean diet with daily dark chocolate for those antioxidants!
- exercise at least every other day, from walking using walking challenges like the Conqueror app, to outdoor bootcamp 3 times per week
It took a breast cancer diagnosis for me to start taking my health more seriously. Please don't be like me. Your health is far too precious.
If you'd like to talk about breast cancer, or anything else related to lifestyle changes as a result of a cancer diagnosis, feel free to drop me an email to hello@wickedcreative.co.uk or use the contact form on here.
