Nutrition

This section will cover key points with nutrition and it’s connection to breast health. We are all genetically different from one another and what works for one woman won’t necessarily work for another. That being said there are some key concepts that everyone will benefit from, such as eat more greens. Experiment and develop a eating protocol that works for you and for where you’re at. Pay attention to how your body feels after consuming certain foods. Are you feeling tired, bloated, energized, light, heavy? These are all clues as to what works and doesn’t work for you.

The goal is to consume an anti-inflammatory diet, to the best of our abilities. This supports not only breast, but whole body health. It’s also important to remember that health goes far beyond what we eat and our ability to heal does not rest solely on our diets. Do your best and enjoy whatever is in front of you. The intention we place and the gratitude we have for our food can be just as powerful as the nutrients themselves.

Greens

No matter the diet or philosophy you subscribe to, you won’t find one that says eat less greens. They are key to lowering inflammation, maintain balanced hormones, detoxifying, healing and so much more. Juicing and smoothies are a great way to increase our green vegetable intake when we feel we have been eating as much as we should have.

Rich source of antioxidants, phytonutrients, vitamins and minerals.
Great source of chlorophyll (oxygenates the blood).
Detoxifying, help remove heavy metals which may be stored in the breast’s fatty tissue.
Great source of fibre which helps remove excess estrogen.
Promotes healing by lowering inflammation.
Provides digestive enzymes which helps improve digestion.

Cruciferous Vegetables

Cruciferous vegetables are of one the most important food groups when it comes to women’s health namely due to their hormone balancing properties and high antioxidant levels.
The cruciferous vegetable family includes broccoli, kale, brussels sprouts, bok choy, cauliflower, cabbage, collard greens, mustard greens, turnip, kohlrabi, watercress and radishes. They are incredibly supportive of a healthy estrogen metabolism and healthy breasts.
The two most active ingredients in the cruciferous family are indole-3-carbinol and sulforaphane.
Indole-3-carbinol helps balance estrogen levels and supports liver detoxification. If you’ve heard of DIM (diindolylmethane), it’s the breakdown of indole-3-carbinol in your stomach.
You’ve probably been recommended indole-3-carbinol or DIM supplements if you suffer from hormonal imbalance. This is a great supplement to use if you’re suffering with hormone imbalances and are in need to some extra support.
Sulforaphane is an incredibly powerful natural compound known to help stop the growth of tumors and inhibit breast cancer stem cells. The highest levels are found in broccoli sprouts which also helps detoxify the liver and maintain healthy hormone levels.
Try to incorporate as least 1-2 different cruciferous vegetables into your weekly meal plan.

Dairy

The milk and butter we consume today is no longer the healthy milk and butter our grandparents consumed. It’s not so much that dairy itself is bad, it’s what the industry has done to it. And no matter what your view is on anything, you can find arguments to support both sides. I’ve seen the benefits of eliminating dairy and so I share this with you.
Cows are fed antibiotics, chemicals growth hormones to help boost their milk supply. We in turn consume these hormones and antibiotics. What the animal consumes is passed along to the consumer. Women need to be concerned with excreting estrogen and not consuming foods that increase estrogen supply.
The energy, fear and stress the animals experience also affect the milk supply. This energetic vibration is than passed on to humans.
If you’re worried about where to get your calcium, eating a plant based diet will get you sufficient amounts of calcium. Studies have shown that countries that consume the highest rates of dairy like the Europeans, especially the Finnish and Swedes, and Americans, have the highest rates of osteoporosis.
Sardines, arugula and tahini contain more calcium than milk.
Dairy can be a contributing factor in a variety of breast issues in women due to it’s inflammatory nature.
Now what about butter? Butter from grass fed and pasture raised cows is considered part of the healthy fats category.
If you’re having a hard time cutting it out switch to sheep and goat milk based cheeses: feta, goat’s, halloumi, manchego, etc. Seeing as these animals are much smaller than cows their hormones levels are also much lower.
As for milk, goat’s milk is a great alternative. There are also wonderful nut and plant based milk available such as oat, almond, and coconut. Remember to read the labels. Lots of these ‘healthy’ milk alternatives are filled with fillers, oils and sugar.
Eliminate it for several months and see how you feel. Many women have reported significant less breast pain and lumpiness when they cut out dairy. Every woman is different and will respond to foods differently.
Again, the quality of what you’re eating is of utmost importance. If you’re consuming dairy, make sure it’s organic and grass fed. Raw dairy is a whole food while pasteurized is a processed food.
The state of your gut health will be a huge factor in the foods you should and shouldn’t consume. More on this to come!

Eat Seasonally

Your body is in tune with the seasons. There’s a reason why certain foods appear at certain times of the year. The nutrients found in these foods are what’s needed by your body to function optimally during that season. Apples are in abundance in the fall help and help clear heat from the summer. The nutrients found in root vegetables in the winter are needed by your body to ground and support itself during this season.
Food temperature is also important. You’ll also be more prone to eating warm nourishing soups in winter and fresh vegetable juices and smoothies during the summer. If you’ve ever tried to eat a smoothie in the middle of winter, you’ve probably experienced some resistance. There’s a reason. This isn’t what your body needs to sustain homeostasis during the cold months, no matter how healthy the smoothie.
This will also explain cravings. If you’re cravings certain foods, your body is in need of a certain nutrient found in that food. For example many women crave chocolate during their menstrual periods. What the body is in need of is magnesium, B vitamins, vitamin D (good time to get out into the sun) and vitamin C. Cravings for sweets usually mean we’re low in potassium. Excess thirst is our body’s way to trying to get minerals. This often is a symptom of adrenal fatigue.
Fruits and vegetables that are eaten in season contain higher levels of nutrients. For example, the blueberries that are found in your grocery store in January and that are flown in from Chile (and taste like water) don’t carry the same nutrition punch as the local blueberries picked in the summer.
Taste is also a great indicator of the nutrient levels. As flavour diminishes so do nutrients.
Eating seasonally keeps your body in tune with the earth’s rhythms and cycles, a key component with dealing with menstrual cycles and hormones. Our bodies cycles are inextricably linked with nature’s.
Eating locally from farmer’s markets is also a great way to not only support the local food chain but consume foods that are higher in nutrients. Foods that are flown in from other countries have loss many nutrients during their travels.

Healthy Fats

Incorporate lots of healthy fats like ghee (clarified butter), avocados, olive oil, sprouted nuts and seeds, and wild oily fish like salmon.
Healthy fats are important for certain vitamin (A,D,E,K are all fat soluble) and mineral absorption.
Healthy fats help keep you satiated, stabilizes blood sugar, insulin levels and supports balanced hormones.
The higher the fat quality, the better your body will function.
Breasts are composed of fatty tissue and respond positively to healthy fats.
Stay away from transfats which are manufactured by adding hydrogen to liquid vegetable oils to make them solid and increase shelf life. Cookies, chips, fries, baked goods, and margarine contain vegetable oils like canola, sunflower which increases inflammation.
Oils such as sunflower, safflower, vegetable, rapeseed (also known as canola) canola, soy, corn are of very low quality and should be replaced with olive, coconut or avocado oils.
Make sure your oils come in a dark, glass bottle. This protects the oil from exposure to sunlight and rancidity. They should also be stored in the fridge.
Oils found in clear, plastic bottles are an easy indicator that they are poor quality and highly inflammatory and are most likely rancid.

Fibre

Fruit, legumes vegetables, nuts and seeds are the best sources of fibre.
Soluble fibre is INCREDIBLY important to help withdetoxifcation.
Women who eat fibre rich diets excrete more estrogen.
There are two types of fibre: soluble and insoluble.
Insoluble, as the name aptly describes, isn’t broken down in the gut, it adds bulk to our stool and doesn’t dissolve in water. Found in grains, nuts, seeds, fruit and vegetable. It’s the ‘tough’ matter, like the stalk, skin and seeds.
Soluble fibre is sticky, soft, absorbs water, boosts the population of good bacteria in the gut, and and forms a gel-like substance which helps the stool slide in the GI system. It also helps excrete estrogen.
If you’re not having a daily bowel movement chances are you’re constipated which means estrogen and toxins aren’t being excreted daily and can lead to a hormonal imbalance.
One of best sources of fibres is beans! Eat them on a daily basis for optimal health.

Fruit

There’s a lot of fear and misinformation steering people away from fruit.
Again, if you’re suffering from a serious illness, such as cancer or other dis-eases, there may be some fruits you need to stay away from due to higher sugar content.
But as a general rule, fruits are a wonderful source of nutrients, antioxidants, fibre, and phytonutrients.
From my knowledge no one has ever gotten worse from eating fruit. Again, we’re all different.
Eat seasonally and organically. Fruits, such as berries, that don’t have protective layers will absorb pesticides and chemicals much more than say grapefruits and bananas.
Remember, these pesticides and chemicals have estrogenic effects on the body. If you’re dealing with and breast and hormone imbalances, consuming organic produce will be very important in your healing journey.

Meat

Experiment with reducing or cutting out meat from your diet if you haven’t already.
Conventionally raised meat contain hormones, antibiotics, pesticides which raise levels of estrogen and increase inflammation.
If you feel like you need meat, do your best to find locally sourced, grass fed and organic.
Your tissues are literally made of what you eat, so make sure you’re feeding yourself the highest quality foods.

Soy

I’ve heard both sides of this argument. Unfortunately, I believe most of the soy on the market is GMO
I personally eat very little of it. It’s never appealed to me.
If you do consume soy make sure it’s organic and non GMO.
Fermented soy is best such as miso and tempeh. Again, different foods affect different women differently. Find what’s best for you. If you consume a lot of soy products and have breast issues, my recommendation is to cut it out of your diet for several months and see that happens.
Choose fermented over unfermented soy.
Cultures, such as the Japanese, that do consume lots of soy consume primarily fermented.

Stimulants

Stay away from stimulants like caffeinated beverages, chocolate. These can overstimulate breast tissue in some women. Again, not all women are the same.
Chocolate. I’ve seen support for both sides. Some say stay away and some say it has important nutrients such as iron, magnesium and protective fats. What’s important is the quality of the chocolate, as with anything we consume. Moderation is also key.
Caffeine has been associated with higher estrogen levels and stimulates breast tissue. Experiment and see how you feel when you cut caffeine out.
Alcohol consumption increases hormone levels in blood. Alcohol requires the liver’s enzymes to break it down and these are the same enzymes needed to eliminate estrogen. Alcohol uses up important enzymes that are needed for more important tasks. “It temporarily blocks the safe short path for estrogen utilization , allowing long path (carcinogenic) estrogens more time to get to the receptor sites. The longer the short path is blocks, that is, the greater the risk for breast cancer, but more so for premenopausal than postmenopausal women and even more before a first full-term pregnancy.” Susun Weed’s ‘Breast Cancer?Breast Health’.
I don’t believe anything manufactured will support your body’s health. That being said, a glass of wine or beer here and there is usually fine – depending on the issues you’re dealing with.
Examine why you tend to reach for the wine on Fridays. It is to relax, have fun, release stress, for the taste? Examining our behavior will help us determine the underlying cause. For example, if you consume alcohol to relax, experiment with other methods of relaxation. Perhaps supplementing with magnesium or creating an herbal tonic will provide you with even greater relaxation all the while supporting your health. The goal is to create habits that will support your health and wellbeing. As you change your diet and nurture yourself on a deeper level, your physiology will start to change and you’ll find those old habits start to dissolve. What use to nourish you, once upon a time, no longer has the same appeal.

Sugar

Breast tissue is incredibly sensitive to high sugar diets, which raises estrogen, insulin, blood sugar and increases cellular inflammation.
Excessive estrogen stimulates breast tissue which can result in fibroadenomas, cysts, lumps, breast pain and tenderness, tumors, or cancer.
Use dates, honey, maple syrup, coconut nectar if you’re in need of some sweetness. But only if your health issues are benign. The more serious the issue, the more I’d stay clear of sugar, of any kind, and that includes the sweeter fruits like pineapple and mango, but only for more serious issues.
Refined sugar also depletes vitamins and minerals very quickly.
Perhaps you’ve been eating more sugar lately, and you’ve notice some white spots on your nails show up. This is a deficiency in zinc or calcium that the sugar consumption has created. So keep an eye on your nails. They’re a great marker for mineral levels.
Tip: If you’ve eaten to much sugar at any point during the day, going for a walk afterwards is a great way to lower blood sugar levels.

Water

Makes up ⅔ of the body
Staying hydrated is key for many reasons. A hydrated lymphatic system will clear out toxins quicker, helps cleanse the body, and helps maintain energy levels.
Proper hydration helps with detoxification, maintains healthy bowel movements, keeps stress levels low, supports healthy lymphatic function and balanced hormones just to name a few.
Estrogen and progesterone influence your hydration and during in your menstrual cycle, blood loss can affect your hydration levels. Best to increase your water intake during this time.
Being dehydrated also stresses the body which greatly impacts it’s ability to heal and function properly.
Hydration prevents constipation which is key for having daily bowel movements that excrete toxins and excess estrogen.
When you’re dehydrated every body function suffers.
Drink 1-2 litres of filtered or spring water daily. Again, we all have different needs so experiment with different quantities and see what feels right for you.
For those of you who have a hard time drinking water add some citrus fruits, berries, cucumbers, mint to a carafe, fill it with water and let it infuse. Your water will now be infused with vitamins and minerals and taste lovely.
Tip: Add some himalayan or sea salt to your water to help increase absorption. This is a game changer.

Intention + Gratitude

Give thanks for your food.
Take the time to enjoy each bite.
Don’t eat if you’re in a rush or distracted.
Your ‘diet’ doesn’t have to be perfect for you to heal. Being too strict and too dogmatic with our food can often produce the opposite result.
Don’t let food, diets, labels stress you out. As your body evolves and heals, your dietary requirements will most likely change. Go with the flow. Perhaps one year, your body is asking you to eat meat. Maybe the next year, it’s asking you not to eat meat. And that’s ok. You don’t have to justify yourself to anyone. Subscribing or not subscribing to a certain diet does not make you less or better than anyone else. We all have our own journeys. What’s important is honouring what your body needs at that time.
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is the energy behind what we eat. I followed a strict Ayurvedic protocol which included eliminating many foods and taking a variety of herbs. During this time I started to doubt the treatment, I felt guilty and would stress that the treatment wouldn’t work when I ate something that I wasn’t supposed to. Guess what, the tumor grew. Do your best to eat the healthiest diet and don’t worry when you eat something you ‘shouldn’t’ be eating. Enjoy it, savor it and give thanks.
Setting a loving intention on our food and being grateful will greatly improve its nutritional and healing benefits, no matter the food.
Create your own rules. Do what feels right for you. Perhaps that’s enjoying a few pieces of chocolate here and there, a glass of wine with friends or some tasty chips. The point is to enjoy and nurture yourself to the best of your ability. Don’t deprive yourself. You will find as you change your diet and the quality of the foods you eat your taste buds will change. Your sensitivity becomes heightened and you won’t be able to tolerate anything too sweet and those fried foods simply start to lose their appeal. You’ll be guided by your intuition to the foods your body needs to heal. It’s truly a magical journey. You will listen less to what others are saying and be guided by your intuition.

“In this food I clearly see the entire Universe supporting my existence.”
Thich Nhat Hanh