The Dr. Oz Show
Air date: November 2, 2011
The Cancer You Fear Most
- Breast cancer risks
- Foods to fight breast cancer
- Rid your legs of spider veins
- The dangers of shape wear
- Do those “as seen as TV” products work?
One out of every eight women watching The Dr. Oz Show today will be effected by breast cancer. We know so much about breast cancer but, how can you figure out your risk?
Over the course of the show, 23 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer. Every 69 seconds, a woman dies from breast cancer.
There are warning signs for breast cancer and lots of questions about breast cancer. Find out your risk level and what to do about it.
Dr. Oz wants to end the confusion and let viewers know that they don't have to be a victim of breast cancer. Understand your risks and how to reduce them.
Several audience members shared stories about their breast cancer diagnosis.
When she told her children she had breast cancer they didn't understand. They were devastated by the what if's. They talked about it as a family.
She was diagnosed twice with breast cancer and so was her mother. Her mother had breast cancer 15 years apart. She had her first diagnosis at age 16. Both times she found the cancer early and treated it. She feels that screenings saved her life.
Monthly self-breast checks led her to discover a cancerous lump. She was aware of how her breasts felt and when something didn't feel right she went into her doctor.
Today breast cancer is survivable. There are over 2.5 million breast cancer survivors today. The survival rate is 85%, 10 years after diagnosis. This show is about the good news – understanding risk factors and reducing them.
Breast Cancer Risk Factors
Dr. Oz says the most important thing to understand about breast cancer is to know your risk factors for developing it.
Ruth Oratz, MD, breast oncologist explained that most people think family history is the biggest factor but in reality it's exposure to estrogen and we now look at estrogen as one of the most powerful breast cancer risk factors.
Five Questions to Determine Estrogen Exposure
- Did you start menstruating before age 12?
- Did you have your first child after age 30?
- Were your children bottle fed?
- Did menopause begin after age 55?
- Did you undergo hormone treatments for pregnancy or menopause?
If you answered yes to any or all of these questions, says Dr. Oz, your risk of estrogen exposure and of developing breast cancer are high.
Weight and Breast Cancer
Weight and diet are contributing factors to breast cancer risks but they are controllable. Having more fat cells, especially around the belly, increases the amount of estrogen. Fat cells produce and store estrogen. Women gaining more than 45 lbs in adulthood may lead to a doubling in the risk of breast cancer.
Fat in the belly contains estrogen which goes straight to the breast. If there is a cancer cell present in the breast, and most of have cancer cells in our body at some point, the body will destroy the cancer cell(s) with immune cells. When there is a large amount of fat the cancer cells flourish being fed all that estrogen. The cancer cells will bring in blood vessels for even more fuel and the immune system cannot keep up with the growth.
Reducing belly fat and maintaining a healthy weight will reduce one of the factors related to breast cancer.
Ask About Breast Density
Dense breast tissue is related to estrogen storage - more estrogen equals greater density. Dense tissue in the breast makes it harder to view the health of the breast by mammogram. How can you tell if your breast tissue is dense? Touching your breast is not an indication of density. Mammography is the only way to determine breast density. Dense breast looks cloudy in a mammogram making it impossible to see all the breast tissue and evaluate health. If cancer is present in dense breast tissue a sonogram can be used to penetrate the dense tissue for evaluation.
When to Have a Mammogram
Dr. Oratz recommended women women should start getting mammograms at age 40 under normal circumstances. A woman with risk factors should consider earlier starting regular mammograms earlier. Ask your doctor about when you should begin mammography.
An audience member shared her story of finding a lump in her breast in the morning and later that day had a mammogram. The technician conducted the mammogram, determined the breast tissue was to dense to see anything and told her she could go home. She held her ground and didn't accept the idea that dense tissue makes too hard to detect cancer. Ten minutes later she had a sonogram and was diagnosed with breast cancer before leaving the building.
There has been an advancement in mammography technology. Digital tomosynthesis takes digital slice images in 3D of the breast and allows for greater viability into the breast especially with dense breast tissue.
Conduct Breast Self-Exams
Another audience member shared her diagnosis story. As a nursing mother she found a breast lump and the doctors was able to determine during the office exam that the cancer had already spread to her lymph nodes.
Women are typically not taught that breast tissue extends all the way up to the arm pits where the lymph nodes resides. When cancer is present in the breasts, they drain into the lymph nodes causing swelling. Be aware of the breast and all the breast tissue and conduct complete exams that includes all the breast tissue.
DoctorOz.com has posted a breast self-awareness card from the Susan G Koman Foundation. Dr. Oz says women should conduct breast self-exams on the same day every month.
Three Food Groups to Keep Breasts Healthy
Food is medicine.
Cruciferous Foods
Cruciferous foods such as arugula, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower and brussel sprouts all contain the potent cancer fighting compound sulforaphane. Broccoli sprouts have the highest amount of sulforaphane. A small handful of broccoli sprouts has as much sulforaphane as one pound of broccoli. Audience members tried the broccoli sprouts and enjoyed the taste. Audience members tried it and all said it was good.
Folate-Rich Foods
Folate helps prevent damage to DNA, the blueprint of our cells that can have errors. Eggs spinach, asparagus, and oranges are all high in folate. Eating foods rich in folate can help a woman reduce her breast cancer risk by 44%.
Sprouted lentils are high in folate as well as fiber, are quick to prepare and can cost as little as $0.55 in health foods stores. [Sprouted lentils are not as common as other sprouts. Call around to local stores to find them or order online.] Warmed and mixed with tomatoes, sprouted lentils are a nutrient dense food. Find the recipe for Fast Cheap N Easy Sprouted Lentils on DoctorOz.com.
Fiber Foods
Whole grains and fruits are the ultimate prevention tool and can act as your daily does of protection. Dr. Oz loves oatmeal, by adding the Healthy Breast Mix of spices and fiber he can increase the fiber by more than double. Cinnamon, granulated orange peel (choose organic because the orange skin is heavy in pesticides), and chia seeds add fiber and flavor to your morning meal.
One tablespoon contains 5g of fiber and can help you toward your daily total of 30-35g of fiber.
Click here to get breast cancer fighting recipes for this Health Breast Mix for breakfast, Minimal Mercury Tuna Salad, Hearty Lentil and Vegetable Soup, Fast Cheap N Easy Sprouted Lentils. Search around in the recipe section of DoctorOz.com for even more cancer risk reducing foods and recipes.
Get Rid of Your Spider Veins
Spider veins can cause women to feel self conscious about their appearance and, as one audience member aptly put it, she fells she cannot express her creativity through clothing knowing that people will see the spider veins.
Dr. Oz illustrated that valves in our veins open and close during circulation. Valves can become weakened allowing blood to accumulate in the veins then the veins spider out to accommodate the excess blood appearing as spider veins.
While annoying and sometimes painful, spider veins are not dangerous.
One option to support leg vein health is to wear compression socks. They conjure up feelings of hideous stockings in the extreme. There are newer styles that are a little more fashion forward. RejuvaHealth.com has a large selection of stylish compression socks.
Another option is to instantly get rid of spider veins in a doctors office with injections of Asclara®.
According to their website:
Asclera® is a sclerosing agent that is injected into the vein. It works by damaging the endothelium, the cells lining the inside of blood vessels. This causes blood platelets to attach to the lining of the vessels; eventually, cellular debris and platelets cause the blood vessel to clot. Over time, the clotted vein will be replaced with tissue.
One audience member agreed to have the procedure performed on the stage. The injection was quick and she said she's had paper cuts that hurt more.
Asclara® cannot be used on all veins and is not suitable for women during pregnancy. Treatments run $400-$700 each and several treatments may be needed but the veins will not reappear.
The Dangers of Shape Wear
Many women squeeze into their shape wear every day and wear them all day long. A daughter in the audience turned in her mother because she was concerned that her mother's long term use of shape wear may not be healthy.
Dr. Oz said that wearing shape wear more than once without washing can lead to urinary tract infections (UTI).
Bacteria comes out of the anus, this is normal. When wearing shape wear all day the bacteria from the anus spread on the undergarment and can reach the vagina and the urethra. That bacteria can climb up through the urinary tract an cause a urinary tract infections.
If you're going to wear the shape wear, Dr. Oz says to wash it after each wearing and to consider styles that are open and do not come in contact with the anus or vaginal area.
Pressure from the shape wear compresses the intestines and stomach and can cause material in the stomach to travel up the esophagus leading to heartburn. Long term heartburn can damage the tissue of the esophagus and is a leading cause of esophageal cancer.
Dr. Oz recommends not wearing shape wear for 30 minutes after eating.
As Seen On TV
Dr. Oz brought out Susan Scharf, consumer mom, to test of these seen on TV products are all that and worth their price too.
It's a big orange diaper that warms the body to release water and toxins? The brochure doesn't say anything about losing weight or about using the product along with a diet. Once you figure out how to put it on, sit or recline for 15 minutes to feel the warmth and relaxation. During menstruation, the product should not be used which Ms. Scharf and Dr. Oz agreed was counter-intuitive. Menstruation would be the time that women would want to lose excess water. Ms. Scharf said she didn't understand the point of the product. For only $39.95, you too can wear large orange pants that warm your midsection.
Smooth Away Hair Removal
Buff away hair and exfoliate too for only $9.95! Remove up to ¼ inch long hair from the face or legs – not for men! It's the rotating action and friction on the skin, not in the pressure. Ms. Scharf tried it on Dr. Oz's arm hair. It curled his hair but didn't remove it. She said you're better off getting a razor and shave your legs.
[Getsmoothaway.com is not a secure page and my computer grumbled at the website so I didn't go there. But on Amazon, you can get a used smooth away for as little as $7.33 or new starting at $0.01.]
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