Do You Really Know What's Good For You?

August 16, 2010

Research strongly suggests that both exercise and a diet rich in fruits and vegetables may reduce risk of recurrence or shortened survivorship in certain cancers. With respect to breast cancer, modest exercise can lower circulating estrogen levels, which is the well-known hormone responsible for tumor proliferation in estrogen-sensitive breast cancer. Fruits and vegetables contain anti-oxidants, which are hypothesized to prevent tumor growth in many types of cancer. The best results researchers have observed among breast cancer survivors is, not surprisingly, among breast cancer survivors who exercise and consume a diet rich in fruits and vegetables.

This seems simple, right? There is one hitch. Behavioral scientists spend a lot of time analyzing what makes us do what we do. They study things like - why do some breast cancer survivors exercise and eat a diet rich in fruits and/or vegetables while others do not? Well, obviously, there is a lot behind this question, but a recent study by the Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine suggests that one reason for some women’s failure to exercise or eat a healthy diet might be painfully simple.

Nearly half of the women surveyed in a large cohort either disagreed with or were unsure of the statement, “Eating at least 5 servings of fruits and/or vegetables per day will reduce the risk of breast cancer recurrence,” and about 1/3 of the women were unsure of or disagreed with the statement “engaging in regular physical activity will reduce the risk of breast cancer recurrence.”

With these results, the researchers had to ask themselves the questions:

Are the disagreeing survivors not getting access to good information, or are they misinformed? In other words, is there competing information?

Succinctly, the study authors from Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine at the University of Toledo concluded: “Many breast cancer survivors do not appear to be aware of the benefits of diet and exercise.”

The question survivors should be asking themselves is this: do you understand the benefits of exercise and basic healthy nutrition?

REFERENCE:

Breast Cancer (Auckl). 2010 Mar 4;4:5-13. Analysis of the relationship between diet and exercise beliefs and actual behaviors among breast cancer survivors in northwest ohio. Weiner JG, Jordan TR, Thompson AJ, Fink BN. Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, University of Toledo, Toledo, Ohio, USA.