8 ways women can lower their risk of heart disease and breast cancer

Heart disease and breast cancer are particularly troublesome for women in the U.S. Heart disease is the leading cause of death among women, while breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in females.

According to the American Heart Association, about 9.1 million women in the United States have coronary heart disease and 44.4 percent of women over the age of 20 have some form of cardiovascular disease. The American Cancer Society estimates that more than 3.8 million women in the U.S. have a history of breast cancer.

But the good news is that women who adopt certain healthy habits can lower their risk of both diseases, according to Internal Medicine and Public Health Nutrition Specialist Kumara Sidhartha, MD, MPH.

Dr. Sidhartha recommends a wholesome unprocessed plant-based diet for as many meals in a week as one can, to supply all of our nutritional needs. This approach has five components that help prevent both breast cancer and heart disease, including:

1. Inflammation Reduction

“A wholesome unprocessed plant-based diet works on multiple mechanisms on how heart disease and cancer occur,” Dr. Sidhartha said. “Chronic inflammation is a key root cause and it is the same underlying fundamental common thread that connects breast cancer and heart disease.” A plant-based diet helps control chronic inflammation by improving our gut health, he said.

2. Antioxidants

The second benefit of a wholesome plant-based diet is that plants are rich in important antioxidants that actually clean up the toxic high-energy molecules called ‘oxidants’ or ‘free radicals’ in our bodies. Free radicals cause cellular damage to the DNA that can cause a cancer cell to form and grow, Dr. Sidhartha said. Those same antioxidants also have been shown to help with preventing blocked arteries and heart disease by preventing ‘oxidation’ of cholesterol in our circulation. It is the ‘oxidized’ LDL cholesterol that start the seed and growth of blockage in the arteries.

3. Healthy Gut

The third benefit of a wholesome plant-based diet is that it promotes a healthy intestinal tract by encouraging friendly bacteria to thrive.

“The friendly bacteria has now been shown to determine how the food we consume may or may not lead to blocked arteries, heart attacks, heart failures, and strokes,” Dr. Sidhartha said. “The food we eat can change the balance and variety of bacteria in our guts. When the friendly bacteria are predominant, that reduces the risks of blocked arteries, strokes and heart attacks/heart failures.”

That same bacterial balance is also important to maintain good immunity in our body, he added. That in turn prevents chronic inflammation, which is how such diets also help prevent breast cancer.

4. High Fiber

One of the additional benefits of a wholesome plant-based diet is that it is high in dietary fiber. Animal-based foods, and processed foods like French fries, white rice and white pasta have zero fiber. But whole grains and unprocessed wholesome plant foods have plenty of dietary fiber, Dr. Sidhartha said.

“Dietary fiber is going to help improve the gut bacteria balance which is going to control the cravings, control food addiction, and efficiently burn calories that are consumed,” he said. “Our gut is our second brain in our body.” This can avoid one of the risk factors for cancer, namely excess body weight.

There is a circuit feedback of communication between our gut and our brain that helps control appetite and cravings, he said. The fiber also ensures that there is plenty of good bacteria which, in turn, reduces inflammation, bolsters our immunity and helps prevent cancer.

Another benefit of fiber is that it makes us feel full and satiated, which helps keep our weight down — one of the keys to a heart-healthy life, said Dr. Sidhartha.

5. Healthier Protein

“When consumed in excess, animal protein raises the risk of cancer, period,” Dr. Sidhartha said. “Plant proteins don’t.”

When you are consuming lentils, beans, nuts and whole grains you get forms of protein that come with fiber and other nutrients and antioxidants that help protect your heart. It also reduces the amount of bad fats that can clog arteries.

Other Lifestyle Essentials

In addition to focusing on a wholesome, unprocessed plant-based diet, Dr. Sidhartha also recommends the following for reducing your risk of heart disease and breast cancer.

6. Limit Alcohol Intake

Excess alcohol has been found to increase the risk of breast cancer, high blood pressure and heart disease.

While some research has shown that some alcoholic intake can be healthful, “the overall health risks outweigh the benefits,” Dr. Sidhartha said. “I think it’s fine for someone to occasionally have a social drink once or twice a week, but regular daily consumption raises the risk for both the high blood pressure and breast cancer.”

That advice changes if someone has already had breast cancer. In that case, Dr. Sidhartha recommends abstaining completely to prevent a recurrence of breast cancer.

7. Regular Exercise

Physical exercise covers a couple of things. It helps balance the calories you eat with calories you burn so you can maintain a healthy weight. Even if you aren’t at an ideal weight, the most important thing is to burn abdominal fat because that is where inflammation starts, according to Dr. Sidhartha.

“It’s one of the seats of inflammation, so when you reduce that you are not only reducing cancer, you are reducing heart disease as well,” he said. “Physical activity also keeps the muscles in shape and toned and prevents falls. It strengthens the muscles and improves lung capacity and stamina.”

8. Regular Screening

One of the best ways to stay healthy is to have a primary care doctor who regularly checks for the things that can cause heart disease and breast cancer.

“Make sure you are being checked for cholesterol, diabetes and blood pressure,” Dr. Sidhartha said. “And mammogram screenings are so important.”