In America, there is a lot of buzz about October being “Breast Cancer Awareness Month”. I’m changing that title to “Breast HEALTH Awareness Month”. Our mind works on what we focus it on. So we’re going to focus here on healthy breasts.
I sent out a health tip last year with similar information. Because this is such an important topic, and I know it has probably affected most of you directly or indirectly, I’m going to approach this subject again.
As I said in last year’s email, the main stream healthcare approach is on ‘early detection’. This is a great concept, and I appreciate Breast Self Exam, tests to detect any abnormalities, and having check ups with your doctor. Please, by all means, do all of these things… it saves a lot of people.
I am going to back up even more and focus on prevention. If we can focus on prevention, hopefully, we don’t get to that stage of having something show up. Once something has been found, the cancer is already there. That’s not preventing anything.
With all of these health tips, I’m giving you tools for creating a balanced life so that your body can work at its’ optimum level. When it gets out of balance, it allows for dis-ease in the body, which can lead to disease.
Cancer is a dis-ease in the body. Something is out of balance, and the body’s fighting techniques are not able to work correctly.
So, here I’m going to share with you 10 ways that you can help to create balance and harmony in your body and better optimize your body’s own defense system. I would also like to note here that breast cancer in men is on the rise. This is something that is affecting everyone now, not just women.
1. Eat whole foods. Packaged and processed foods almost always contain chemicals and the nutritional content is greatly reduced.
2. Eat minimal to no dairy and gluten. I know this may be controversial, but both of these create a lot of inflammation and lower our immune systems, thereby lowering the body’s ability to fight.
3. Participate in aerobic exercise 20-30 minutes 4-6 times per week. Exercise and breathing increases blood circulation and moves the lymph supply. Our lymph system does not have its’ own means for movement. The only way that it moves is through muscle movement.
4. Take cold showers. Again, this moves the lymph and can help decongest the breast tissue area and the armpits. I have a past ‘health tip’ dedicated to this on my website that explains the benefits of cold showers and how to take them for maximum benefit.
5. Keep your thoughts positive. When you think negatively, your mind creates negative experiences for you. When you think positively, your mind creates a positive reality for you. You can find thousands of positive quotes in books and online. If you need to, make a list of positive, uplifting quotes and tape them to your bathroom mirror and your fridge so that you can keep reminding yourself how great, how happy, and how beautiful you are! Meditation is also a great way to replace negative thoughts with positive ones. I practice Kundalini Yoga and Meditation, and we have hundreds of beautiful meditations that clear the mind’s silliness and replace those with uplifting, self-affirming thoughts. Deepak Chopra also has 21 day meditation series that are very powerful.
6. Get adjusted with your Chiropractor. Keeping your spine in line keeps the nerve supply to the heart, lungs, and breast tissue open and flowing so that they have the greatest opportunity to stay healthy. When your heart or lungs aren’t working maximally, the chest starts to cave in and the muscles contract so that they don’t have to work as hard. This can result in decreased blood supply and lymph drainage to and from the breast tissue.
7. Breathe deeply throughout the day. This calms the mind, opens the ribcage, and moves the lymph around the breast tissue and along the outer sides of the ribcage.
8. Laugh! Laughing releases endorphins, increases your oxygen supply, and is basically, all-around good for your health. I make sure I laugh several times a day. It always decreases my stress and lightens my mood (as well as those around me).
9. Keep your liver clean. The liver is the blood detoxifier of the body. When it is over burdened with cleaning out the toxins in our bodies, the blood then becomes saturated with those toxins and causes more inflammation in the body. In Chinese Medicine, they say that a toxic liver can cause lots of problems in the body. Two really simple things that you can do and that are very effective are, drinking Yogi Tea and the Master Cleanser.
10. Avoid eating and drinking out of plastic. Plastic contains chemicals that act like estrogen in our bodies. When our bodies see this ‘fake’ estrogen, it decides to use it, thinking that it is real estrogen and then attaches it to cells in our bodies.
I want to just plug here… please, try to avoid plastic, in general. Take your shopping bags with you, rather than getting another plastic shopping bag from the store, try to ‘pre-cycle’… avoid buying items that are packaged in plastic. Plastic is in our water supply and it’s affecting us, the animals, and our children. It NEVER decomposes.
So, I hope some of these suggestions resonate with you and that you may try 1 or 2 of them. As I tell my patients, any life changes are slow. You don’t have to change everything at once, and I actually strongly advise to take things very slowly to avoid burning out.
Many blessings to you all for a happy, health life,
Disclaimer: none of these above suggestions are guaranteed to prevent breast cancer. They are suggestions to improve your health. Please, be responsible for your health and take the steps necessary to stay healthy. If you ever find an abnormality in your breast tissue, please see your health care professional.
