Breasts
Introduction
Breasts
Up to 70 percent of women in the West experience breast changes that fluctuate with their menstrual cycles. Their breasts can feel so tender, swollen and/or lumpy that the discomfort is unbearable. Some women complain that they can’t bear to be hugged, and find sleeping very difficult because they can’t get comfortable.
Are there any symptoms?
The symptoms are grouped under a variety of different umbrella terms,
including cyclical breast pain, cyclical mastalgia (which literally
means breast pain), cyclical mastitis or fibrocystic breast disease.
Despite their severity and the disruption they can cause, most breast
problems are benign, not cancer. However, don’t be tempted to ignore
them. Any unusual changes in your breasts should be reported to your
doctor.
Finding out if there is a reason for your breast discomfort
If your discomfort definitely varies with your cycle, improving
when your period begins, or fairly soon afterwards, then there is unlikely
to be anything sinister at the root. However, it always pays to be vigilant
about examining your breasts, so even if you can dismiss your pain as
being cyclical, you should continue to check your breasts regularly.
If your doctor finds anything suspicious during a physical breast check, then he/she will probably refer you for a mammogram. For more information on whether a mammogram is a good idea and what other choices you have, see Breast problems e-book at The Natural Health Practice
What
are your choices?
The natural approach is to look at breast discomfort from a number
of ways at the same time. Breast tenderness is not really a medical
illness, so why treat it medically with strong drugs, given all the
risks involved? The natural approach involves giving your body the tools
it needs to heal itself, using good food, supplements and herbs to correct
any imbalances with female hormones. What you eat and drink can make
an enormous difference to the breast problems you experience during
your cycle. I have seen some women eliminate all symptoms in just one
cycle by making a few changes.
Multivitamin and Mineral
A good quality multivitamin and mineral would form the foundation
of your supplement programme to make sure that you are getting a ‘little
bit of everything’. You then add in those nutrients in slightly higher
amounts which are known to be helpful for breast problems.
Vitamin E
Vitamin E has been shown to help reduce breast pain and tenderness
in a number of studies and is worth supplementing over a couple of months
to see if it helps ease your symptoms. Vitamin E is found in foods such
as almonds, leafy green vegetables, oats, soya, sunflower seeds and
oil, wheatgerm and whole grains, but you should also take a good supplement.
B Vitamins
If there is a deficiency of the B vitamins in your body, your liver
will be unable to inactivate 'old' oestrogens which can be playing havoc
with your cycle and creating an excess of oestrogen because 'old' hormones
are not be eliminating properly. Taking a B-complex tablet can help
to reduce breast symptoms for this reason.
Lactobacillus acidophilus
Cyclical breast changes may be due to an excess of oestrogen over
progesterone. Lactobacillus acidophilus helps to increase the levels
of enzymes that work to reabsorb the 'old' oestrogens in your body.
These probiotics (beneficial bacteria) also help to improve the transit
time of a bowel movement. The longer waste material stays in your system
the more 'old' hormones and toxins can be reabsorbed back into your
body.
Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs)
Essential fatty acids are not only an important part of a healthy
diet, but they can make a big difference to problems associated with
hormones. Aim to get plenty in your daily diet (in the form of nuts,
seeds, oily fish, walnuts and oils such as corn and safflower). Apart
from this, however, it’s a good idea to take a daily supplement. Research
has shown that supplementing with evening primrose oil which contains
GLA (gamma linolenic acid) can have a significantly positive effect
on breast discomfort. The GLA helps to control the production of a 'bad'
prostaglandin called PGE2, which can causes heat and inflammation in
the breasts if levels are too high. GLA also increases the level of
another 'good' prostaglandin PGE1, which can help to balance the effect
of prolactin on the breasts.
It is now possible to get evening primrose oil on prescription in the UK. The GLA content is normally 40mg per capsule and you may need to take up to 8 capsules a day to achieve the desired effect (the suggested dosage is between 240 and 320 mg per day). The GLA content in each capsule varies tremendously between supplement producers, so it’s worth scouting around for a brand with higher levels of GLA.
Evening primrose oil is only one of the important oils studied for its effect on breast discomfort. Other oils, such as linseed oil, starflower oil, blackcurrant seed oil and borage oil may be just as effective.
Warning
Check with your doctor before taking any capsules containing GLA if
you have a history of epilepsy.
Will I be more susceptible to breast cancer if I have breast problems
during my cycle?
First and foremost, it’s important to establish that being prone
to breast problems throughout your cycle does not mean that you are
at a higher risk of developing breast cancer. What breast pain, tenderness
and lumps do tell you, however, is that your hormones are not functioning
correctly. By achieving optimum health, through diet, and by addressing
any vitamin and mineral deficiencies, your body will be given the opportunity
and the tools it needs to correct any imbalances you may be suffering.
The key word in natural medicine is ‘prevention’. It’s a great deal
easier to prevent a problem than it is to try to correct once it has
appeared.
Furthermore, by adopting a healthier lifestyle you will be more likely to prevent breast cancer which is discussed in detail in the rest of this chapter which you can read by clicking on Breast problems e-book at The Natural Health Practice.
Herbs (see caution below)
The aim of the herbal remedies is to help balance your hormones and to ensure that your liver processes oestrogen efficiently so that any excess is excreted properly. The herbs also help support the changes you are making with your diet in order to speed up the process.
Agnus Castus
(Vitex/Chastetree berry) This herb can be enormously useful in
the treatment of breast tenderness because of its ability to balance
the female hormones.
Ginkgo Biloba
A trial conducted by a hospital in France has shown that women
who took ginkgo had significantly less pre-menstrual breast pain than
those who took a placebo. Ginkgo helps to increase circulation and can
also reduce swelling.
Herbs for the liver
The liver, which is the major organ of detoxification, helps to
eliminate accumulated 'old' oestrogen so it is important that it is
functioning efficiently. Both milk thistle and dandelion are excellent
herbs for optimising liver function. If your body does not excrete oestrogen
then you can end up with an accumulation which then further upsets the
balance of oestrogen to progesterone.
You should not take any of the above herbs if you are taking, The Pill, Fertillity drugs, HRT or any other hormonal treatment or other medication unless they are recommended by a registered, experienced practitioner.
Tests are extremely useful, in that they can tell you what deficiencies you have at the moment and then for you to know what supplements would be useful to take to correct those deficiencies. You would then be re-tested after three to four months to monitor your progress and to adjust the supplement programme accordingly.
Mineral Analysis Test
with Supplement and Nutritional Assessment Programme
This test measures the deficiency and excess levels of 7 different minerals
and 5 heavy toxic metals that may be present in your body.
Online Personalised
Supplement Assessment Programme
The analysis of this comprehensive questionnaire will give you a three
monthly supplement programme to help balance any vitamin and mineral
deficiencies you may have.
After three months you would then have a re-test in order to monitor your progress and adjust your supplement programme according to your new condition.
If you need help in obtaining any of the supplements, herbs or tests mentioned above, click, The Natural Health Practice. They can supply all of them for you online or if you prefer to talk to somebody first you can also order by mail order on the telephone. The products supplied by this company are always of the highest quality.
Nutrition
Ensure you are getting the right nutrition: Follow dietary recommendations
outlined on the Foundation
of Health page. And for more information on the special dietary
recommendations for breast problems, see the rest of the chapter on Breast problems e-book at The Natural Health Practice
The supplement programme below should be taken for at least three months in order to achieve best results
Your supplement plan
- A good multivitamin and mineral supplement
- Vitamin E (400–800 iu per day as d-alpha tocopherol)
- GLA (150mg per day)
- EPA (300mg per day)
- Vitamin B-complex (50 mg per day)
- Acidophilus (once per day)
- Ginkgo biloba (300 mg per day)
- Agnus Castus
At the end of three months you should reassess your condition and adjust your supplement programme accordingly.
The tests below have been specially selected to be the most helpful if you are concerned about breast problems.
Mineral Analysis Test with Supplement and Nutritional Assessment Programme
Online Personalised Supplement Assessment Programme
After three months you would then have a re-test in order to monitor your progress and adjust your supplement programme according to your new condition.
If you need help in obtaining any of the supplements, herbs or tests mentioned above, click, The Natural Health Practice. They can supply all of them for you online or if you prefer to talk to somebody first you can also order by mail order on the telephone. The products supplied by this company are always of the highest quality.
The section above forms part of a larger 18 page chapter on Breast Problems taken from my book,. In the rest of the chapter you will learn what the medical approaches to breast problems are and how to combine them with the natural approach. This is called Integrated Medicine and is the way that healthier of the future is moving towards. You will also learn what medical tests will give you an accurate diagnosis of your condition and if you really need to have them. The medical treatments for breast problems are then examined which can include looking at either drugs or surgery. Each treatment is then discussed and the pros and cons of the options explained. The Integrated Approach to breast problems is considered in some detail so that if appropriate you can know how to combine the best of both conventional and natural medicine.
At the end of the chapter is a practical step by step summary of what you can do to help yourself.
If you would like to read the rest of this chapter click, Breast problems e-book at The Natural Health Practiceand you will be given details of how you can download the whole chapter.
The contents of this site are for information only and are intended to assist readers in identifying symptoms and conditions they may be experiencing. This site is not intended to be a substitute for taking proper medical advice and should not be relied upon in this way. Always consult a qualified doctor or health practitioner, especially if you are pregnant, taking the pill or on any medication. Your situation will need to be looked at individually and you should not attempt to self treat. The author and publisher cannot accept responsibility for illness arising out of the failure to seek medical advice from a doctor.
The views expressed by third parties placing material on these pages are not representative of the views of the author or publisher. The Author and Publisher cannot monitor the content not produced by us and has not reviewed all the third party material published on this site and the Author and Publisher accept no liability whatsoever in relation to the content of third party material placed on these pages.
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