To begin, this research allowed women of ages 18+ at
the first stage of breast cancer which is when no tumour is present but the
cancer is found by lymph nodes in the under arm as well as a BMI of 20-45
kg/m^2. They also assessed each woman in regards to their height, weight, blood
pressure, waist and hip circumference. On top of the assessment, a
questionnaire was also presented which asked participants of their age,
race/ethnicity, education, household characteristics, health status and
medication use. Once the protocols were finished, subjects were randomly
assigned to one of two groups, a control arm group or an intervention arm
group.
In the control arm group, subjects received the “My
Pyramid” plan which was to have “30mins of exercise per day and to also follow
the Dietary Guidelines for Americans which included 2 cups of fruits, 2 ½ cups
of vegetables, moderate fat intake, 3 servings of whole grains, and 3 servings
of low-fat dairy for 2000kcal diet (1).” They were not given professional advice
other than a brochure and were allowed to make any changes to their diet and
exercise program if chosen to do so.
In the intervention arm group, subjects received
professional couseling by telephone that “blended motivational interviewing
with social cognitive theory (1),” which is basically a learning what you
observe. This group received “pedometers, a Daily Food and Exercise Log, a Fast
Tracker, Fast Food Booklet, a Fat gram counter/food exchange list book and
example menus at individually appropriate calorie levels (1).”
Of the 77 women who were recruited for this study, 40
women (55%) actually enrolled and only 30 (75%) of the 40 women completed the
entire study.
It was found that in the intervention group, there was
a significant increase for physical activity and fruit and vegetable intakes.
Women who completed the research also had higher blood carotenoids at baseline
and decreased their body mass index to less than 30kg/m^2.
A final questionnaire was conducted at the end of the
study asking how helpful was the study. The control and intervention group, both
said that the program was not stressful at all and was very helpful on some
level.
In general, this study concluded that breast cancer
patients are willing to receive help for an overall healthier life style during
cancer treatment in which they receive benefits in several areas.
What I find interesting about this study is that all
these women find it easy and stress-free. Well, if it is so stress-free, why
did these women not take these preventative measures to begin with? Could it be
that they were lazy, uneducated about the benefits of exercise, had a busy
schedule with no time for exercise, etc?
Several other studies have shown that a preventative
measure of breast cancer is moderate to vigorous exercise for women in
premenopausal, postmenopausal stage, and especially during the adolescence age.
Researchers have proposed that physical activity can prevent tumor development
of breast cancer by lowering the hormone levels, insulin levels, improving the
immune response, and maintaining weight to avoid a high BMI and excess body
fat.
This is probably, in my opinion, the best natural way to prevent / improve breast cancer or maintain a healthy way of living in general.
With all these thoughts in mind, are you going to take the initiative and go exercise?
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