The Link Between Breast Cancer And Toxic Environmental Factors

Dr. Bev Blessing FNP, PHD

Here is my summary with some sensible recommendations of a recent article by Mehmet C. Oz, MD, and Michael F. Roizen, MD entitled, "Breast Cancer Risk May Be Linked to Toxic Environmental Factors". Like many women I am looking into this topic more and more. Unfortunately there is a lot of information out there, and much of it is controversial. I think the key is that we really don't have a good handle on the amount of exposure we are really getting. Defining what truly is "Generally Recognized as Safe" (GRAS) is very difficult. For now, my advise is to avoid high or persistent exposure venues, work on addressing obesity issues,  and change buying habits to avoid potential toxins in foods and cosmetics. Let's share information so that we can all learn and strive to be healthier. Please view the original:

Breast Cancer Risk May Be Linked to Toxic Environmental Factors
by Mehmet C. Oz, MD, and Michael F. Roizen, MD

You wouldn't take a bath in paint thinner or breathe gas fumes for fun, but small "everyday" doses aren't okay either. A big new report on breast cancer and environmental toxins has terrific advice. Didn't get to read all 300 pages? We YOU Docs dug in for you to get the key stuff on protecting you and yours from environmental chemicals that increase breast cancer risk.

The news must have been tough reading for reporters on deadline because plenty of media accounts got this important story wrong, concluding, "It's too soon to tell." It's not. The Institute of Medicine's concise message: "Limit or eliminate your exposure to chemicals that are plausible contributors to breast cancer risk."Consider getting screened for breast cancer.

Sure, there's a lot we don't know yet about environmental cancer threats. Cancer can take decades to develop, and over decades we're all exposed to thousands of compounds. Connecting the dots isn't easy. But here's what we do know:

About 34,000 cancer deaths a year are due to environmental pollutants.
The report found the strongest evidence for secondhand smoke; chemicals in gas fumes, car exhaust and some work environments; and solvents in dry cleaning, paint, and paint thinners.
Hormone-like chemicals in plastics, pesticides, and elsewhere could also be a problem.

Don't shrug off these warnings. Instead, take these five steps to lower your exposure to many toxins that put you at the highest risk for breast cancer:

1. Don't breathe in this gunk: tobacco smoke, gasoline fumes, and car exhaust. They have the strongest links to breast cancer risk, so steer totally clear of other people's tobacco smoke. Avoid inhaling gas fumes when you fill up at the pump, and open garage or storage shed doors for a few minutes before going in. Fumes build up in closed spaces where you keep cars, mowers, blowers, and other gas-powered equipment. Avoid vehicle exhaust. Check your indoor air quality to breathe easy.

2. Keep and try to use this stuff outside: organic solvents in paints, paint strippers, and glues. Air out fresh dry cleaning in the garage or on a porch before bringing it in. Try to find a "green" dry cleaner that doesn't use trichloroethylene or perchloroethylene. Both solvents are health worries. If solvents are reported in your local water supply, add a carbon filter to your taps.

3. Sidestep hormone disturbers. The most famous one, BPA, is linked to a protein found in up to 30% of women with breast cancer. Fortunately, BPA has been removed from virtually all hard plastic bottles, glasses, and pitchers, but most canned foods still come in cans lined with BPA-laced material (it excels at blocking spoilage and can contaminates). Also, most thermal receipts from such places as fast-food restaurants and gas stations are BPA-laden. No widely available substitute has been found for can liners or receipts, but the hunt is on. Meanwhile, try to buy fresh or frozen foods, look for BPA-free cans -- about 20% are (usually from organic lines) -- and don't take thermal receipts if you don't need. If you do, stash 'em, and wash your hands before touching food.

4. Be choosy about personal-care and household products. There's plenty of carcinogen controversy about certain chemicals in cosmetics, soaps, shampoos, and more. The Environmental Working Group has a cosmetics database of worry-free products, and Green Seal is one good guide to choosing nontoxic cleaners (try baking soda and vinegar, too).

It's not just about toxins. To really cut breast cancer risk, keep your weight healthy and your waist under 33 inches. Stay active. Stick to one drink daily, and if you're at above-average risk, don't drink. Consider hormone replacement therapy for tough menopausal symptoms if you're not at extra risk for breast cancer and heart disease. We believe taking bioidentical estrogen, micronized progesterone, and two low-dose aspirin daily both cools hot flashes and lowers breast cancer odds. Even without menopausal issues, talk to your doc about low-dose aspirin to counter breast cancer, colon cancer, and stroke. Take aspirin with half a glass of warm water before and after. Got it?!

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Smoking Early In Pregnancy Raises The Risk Of Heart Defects In Infants

Dr. Enrique Jacome MD

Maternal cigarette smoking in the first trimester was associated with a 20 to 70 percent greater likelihood that a baby would be born with certain types of congenital heart defects, according to a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Congenital heart defects are the most common type of birth defects, contributing to approximately 30 percent of infant deaths from birth defects annually.

The study found an association between tobacco exposure and certain types of defects such as those that obstruct the flow of blood from the right side of the heart into the lungs (right ventricular outflow tract obstructions) and openings between the upper chambers of the heart. 


"Women who smoke and are thinking about becoming pregnant need to quit smoking and, if they're already pregnant, they need to stop," said CDC Director Thomas R. Frieden, M.D., M.P.H. "Quitting is the single most important thing a woman can do to improve her health as well as the health of her baby."

Based on the findings of this and other studies, eliminating smoking before or very early in pregnancy could prevent as many as 100 cases of right ventricular outflow tract obstructions and 700 cases of atrial septal defects each year in the United States. For atrial septal defects alone, that could potentially save $16 million in hospital costs.

"Successfully stopping smoking during pregnancy also lowers the chances of pregnancy complications such as preterm delivery and that an infant will have other complications such as low birth weight," said Adolfo Correa, M.D., Ph.D., medical officer in CDC's National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities.

The findings from the study, "Maternal Smoking and Congenital Heart Defects in the Baltimore-Washington Infant Study," are based on a large population-based case-control study of congenital heart defects conducted in the United States; 2,525 case and 3,435 control infants born from 1981 to 1989 were included in this analysis.

Congenital heart defects are conditions present at birth that decrease the ability of the heart to work well, which can result in an increased likelihood of death or long-term disabilities. They affect nearly 40,000 infants in the United States every year.

It is estimated that right ventricular outflow tract obstructions affect approximately 2,500 infants per year and atrial septal defects affect approximately 5,600 infants per year in the United States. In 2004, U.S. hospital costs for all congenital heart defects were estimated at approximately $1.4 billion.

For the paper visit: http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/abstract/peds.2010-1399dv1?rss=1

For information about birth defects and smoking, please visit http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/features/birthdefects-smoking-keyfindings.html or call 1-800-CDC-INFO.

For more information on smoking and tobacco use, please visit: www.cdc.gov/tobacco

For information about congenital heart disease, please visit:http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/chd/chd_what.html.

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Six Things To Know About Yourself For A Healthier 2012

Dr. Enrique Jacome MD

What are the most important things a woman can do to stay healthy in 2012? It starts with knowing yourself better. Analyzing some key facts about your body & health history will take you a long way to a 2012 full of great physical health & fun. Here are six suggestions to get you started: 

1. Know your body composition. A study published in the International Journal of Obesity found that    25 to 30 percent of young women with a normal BMI (19 to 25) still carry excessive body fat. The easiest way to check your body composition is with bioelectric impedance analysis, available in many gyms and doctors’ offices.

2. Know your family’s health history. Quiz the heck out of relatives, then tell everything you learn to your M.D. Need help coming up with a list of questions? The U.S. Surgeon General’s Family Health Portrait (www.familyhistory.hhs.gov) offers easy instructions.

3. Know your cancer risk. The American Cancer Society’s Great American Health Check (www.cancer.org/greatamericans) asks a few questions about your personal and family health history and then generates a list of recommended screening tests, plus tips on how to reduce your health risks.

4. Know your cholesterol levels. A survey by the Society for Women’s Health Research revealed that less than a third of American women know their numbers. Get your cholesterol checked every five years, starting at age 20. You’re in the clear if your total number is under 200 mg/dL, with an LDL (that’s the bad kind) of less than 100 mg/dL and an HDL (that’s the good kind) of 50 mg/DL or more.

5. Know your resting heart rate. The lower the number, the less your heart has to work (and that’s a good thing). Take your pulse in the morning, when you’re most relaxed. Measure the number of beats in 10 seconds, then multiply by six. Your number should be between 60 and 80--even lower if you’re athletic.

6. Know your waist-to-hip ratio. The best test for predicting heart attacks may be the proportion of your waist to your hips. Measure your waist at the smallest point, then measure your hips at the widest point. Divide the first number by the second number: an ideal ratio is 0.8 or lower.

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