Tag Archive for: Prevention

October is Breast Cancer awareness month and a perfect time to learn the facts about this very common and potentially deadly disease. Below are some facts from Breastcancer.org, where you can find out more information if you or a loved one is fighting this cancer.

  • 1 out if 8 women will get breast cancer during their lifetime (12%)
  • A man’s risk for breast cancer is 1 in 1000
  • In 2015 – 231,840 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed
  • In 2015- over 40,000 women are expected to die from breast cancer
  • Breast cancer has the 2nd highest mortality rate for cancers with the exception of lung cancer in women
  • 2nd to skin cancer, breast cancer is the most common diagnosed cancer for American women
  • Under the age of 45, African American women are at higher risk than white women
  • Hispanic, Asian and Native American women are at lower risk of developing breast cancer at any age
  • Risk doubles if a woman has a first degree relative (mother, sister, daughter) that had breast cancer
  • Only 5-10% of breast cancer can be linked to having the genes BRCA1 and BRCA2
  • If you have BRCA1 you risk goes up to 45-55%
  • BRCA2 the risk is 45%
  • 85% of breast cancer occurs with NO family history
  • Top risk factors are gender and aging

 

While exercise, eating a healthy diet, not smoking and maintaining a healthy weight all contribute to staying cancer free, the best weapon against breast cancer is a mammogram. There are two main types of mammograms available today, film or digital, talk to your doctor to see which is most appropriate for you. Film mammograms and digital both take two pictures of the breasts. The difference is how they are printed and stored. The actual process is the same but the storing of the results is different. Film is on film and digital is on a computer. The benefit to the digital is that they can be shared between doctors easily and blown up to see closer if something looks suspicious. There is also a 3D mammogram, which is available in 48 of our 50 states. The 3D mammogram takes images form various angles of the breast in ‘slices’, which allows for a deeper more accurate view. However, 3D mammograms are not always covered by insurance and are costly at $150 and up.These mammograms are good for younger women, women with dense breast tissue or implants. Studies have shown that 3D mammography may help up to 40% more to detect cancer. They also lessen the ‘call backs’ because they are so precise.

Knowledge and early detection saves lives. Mammograms take 10-20 minutes and while they can be uncomfortable they do not hurt. If you have a family history of breast cancer, mammograms are being recommended at an earlier age than 40. Talk to your mothers, sisters, daughters, aunts, grandmas and friends. Urge them to get tested and have yearly mammograms. Another great way to help fight this disease is by raising money and participating in a Breast Cancer walk/run. Think Pink!

What is a wrinkle?

A wrinkle is an indentation of the skin or shallow or deep set lines caused by aging. Wrinkles usually go hand in hand with sagging skin. While we cannot stop the clock on aging, there are many precautions that can slow it down.

CQJ_0849‘Development of facial wrinkles is a kind of fibrosis of the skin. Misrepair-accumulation aging theory suggests that wrinkles develop from incorrect repairs of injured elastic fibers and collagen fibers. Repeated extensions and compressions of the skin cause repeated injuries of extracellular fibers in derma. During the repairing process, some of the broken elastic fibers and collagen fibers are not regenerated and restored but replaced by altered fibers. When an elastic fiber is broken in an extended state, it may be replaced by a “long” collagen fiber. Accumulation of “long” collagen fibers makes part of the skin looser and stiffer, and as a consequence, a big fold of skin appears. When a “long” collagen is broken in a compressed state, it may be replaced by a “short” collagen fiber. The “shorter” collagen fibers will restrict the extension of “longer” fibers, and make the “long” fibers in a folding state permanently. A small fold, namely a permanent wrinkle, then appears’

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wrinkle

Wrinkles can be caused by internal and external factors. Wrinkles form at the dermis and epidermis levels of the skin. The visual appearance of this is dependent on which layer the wrinkle forms in. According to How Stuff Works, The sun is 90% responsible for wrinkles.

Understanding external and internal factors and how to avoid wrinkle formation and protect against premature aging:

Internal factors:

Smoking

Glycation (breakdown of collagen by ingested sugar)

Drinking excessive alcohol (causes glycation)

Genetic age (plays a role no matter how healthy you are)

Habitual facial muscles (expression lines)

External factors:

Sun

Smoking

Pollution

Improper skin care

The Do’s & Don’ts

DO

Wear sunscreen + hat + glasses

Exfoliate

Moisturize skin

Eat healthy, anti-oxidant rich foods + foods high in Omegas fatty acids

Take oral supplements

Use active anti-oxidant treatment products

See a Dermatologist

Use a retinol based product or natural derivative

Sleep on a silk pillowcase

Protect children from the Sun at a young age

DON’T

Get Sun exposure

Get Sun burned (50-80% of sun damage is from childhood burns)

Smoke

Drink excessive alcohol

Eat excessive sugar or fried

foods

Tug on facial skin

Little tips to consider:

Drinking from a straw may have a similar effect on the lips as smoking as far as developing little wrinkles.

Rubbing the under eye area with wipes of your finger can damage thin, delicate eye tissue. Try tapping eye product instead of rubbing.

Your skin type ca play a role in determining wrinkles also. Oily skin is  less prone to wrinkles. As we age the loss of moisture, collagen and elastin causes sagging, loss of firmness and dryness.

Investing in a silk pillowcase will help skin stay hydrated. Cotton absorbs moisture and can suck the hydration right out of your skin as well as leave sleep wrinkle. You hair will thank you for the pillowcase too.