Weight Control and Exercise Lower Breast Cancer Risks

A healthy lifestyle including exercise and physical activities can lower the risk of breast cancer in women, cancer experts say.

Around 25 percent of breast cancer cases can be prevented if women exercise moderately and keep their weight under control.

"The greatest benefits for breast cancer reduction come from weight control and physical activity together," internist Anne McTiernan, a researcher with the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, said in a USA Today report.

The risk of breast cancer rises as women grow older. One out of eight women in the U.S., about 12 percent, is likely to get diagnosed with invasive breast cancer, according to the Cancer Society.

"A large part of breast cancer risk is determined by women's lifetime exposure to estrogen. Your risk increases if you begin your period early, if you go through menopause late, if you have fewer children or if you have them later in life. Those are considered non-modifiable risk factors," said Alpa Patel, an American Cancer Society epidemiologist.

Not just women, men may also have chances of developing breast cancer, according to the Cancer Society. Compared to men, women are more prone to this disease because they have more of female hormones like progesterone and estrogen, which can trigger breast cancer cell growth.

Around 5 to 10 percent breast cancer cases are caused by genetic defects and heredity, but altering one's lifestyle is likely to lower risks for many women.

"A small percentage of women, including Angelina Jolie, have genes that put them at a very high lifetime risk," Patel says. "Jolie opted for a preventative double mastectomy after learning that she carried a mutation in a gene called BRCA1, which gave her an 87% chance of breast cancer."

The BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes play a major role in causing hereditary breast cancer as per the cancer society.

"Women with those genes need to be thinking of more intensive ways of reducing their risk," said McTiernan.  "They need to be talking to a specialist."

But studies conducted by McTiernan point towards the impact of weight loss and regular exercising on breast cancer. It enhances the biomarkers like estrogen and reduces the risk of breast cancer.

Even the American Cancer Society emphasizes on following a healthy lifestyle by consuming plant-based food, maintaining a healthy weight and always staying physically active.