By Presidential proclamation, April is National Cancer Control Month, addressing a very important topic. For many women, the first thought that comes to mind is breast cancer, given its prevalence in our culture. Did you know that about 1 in 8 American women will develop invasive breast cancer over the course of her lifetime?
What’s interesting is that about 85% of breast cancers occur in women with no family history.
Rather, they develop through genetic mutations associated with the aging process and lifestyle/
environmental factors. That means we have a fair degree of power in determining our level of
risk─with a healthy lifestyle boosting our margin of safety.
Simple daily choices have more impact than you think. For example, as you reach for your
morning whey protein shake, you should know that along with the many other benefits this
unique functional food delivers, it appears to help prevent breast cancer too. This shouldn’t
come as a complete surprise, since whey protein has many immune-boosting biological
components, including lactoferrin, beta-lactoglobulin, alpha-lactalbumin, glycomacropeptide,
and immunoglobulins.1 How about saying all that 5 times quickly?
As it happens, however, whey protein’s anti-breast cancer benefits go beyond enhancing the
immune system. One study found that whey protein reduces the spread of breast cancer cells
up to 30% by an altogether different mechanism─which is helping to protect laminins from being
degraded.2 Laminins are a family of glycoproteins that comprise much of your body tissues and
play many crucial roles in daily cell operations. In short, laminins are vital for the maintenance
and survival of living tissue.
Another study found that a lifetime exposure to whey protein decreased the incidence of breast
cancer tumors.3 It’s now well established that whey protein contains components that not only
provide nutrition, but can also prevent and help manage disease.4
With a foe like cancer to consider, why overlook any natural health solution that’s scientifically
proven to help protect you─especially when it’s also packed with a host of additional wellness
benefits? Here’s to having some control!
REFERENCES
1 Altern Med Rev. 2004 Jun;9(2):136-56.
2 CancerLett. 2007 Jul 8;252(1):65-74. Epub 2007 Jan 9.
3 Nutr Cancer. 2006;55(2):171-7.
4 J Am Coll Nutr. 2007 Dec;26(6):713S-23S.
