Protect Your Daughters From Breast Cancer

I received this in my email this morning from SparkPeople. Thought it was important enough to share with all my blog friends.

Protect Your Daughters from Breast Cancer

Recently, scientists studied the effects of diet on mice that were genetically modified to develop breast cancer. Once bred, they fed female mice a diet high in either omega-3 fatty acids or omega-6 fatty acids throughout pregnancy and while breastfeeding their young mice. Once weaned, the young female mice continued on either the omega-3 or omega-6 diet. All of the baby mice on the omega-6 fatty acid diet showed tumor development by 6 months of age, while those on the healthy, omega-3 fatty acid diet had only 13% incidence of tumor development. Most people's diets are high in meat, eggs, poultry, snack crackers, chips, sweets, baked goods, vegetables oils, and margarine--foods high in omega-6 fatty acids--and low in omega-3 fatty acids. This type diet may actually increase the risk for breast cancer.

Action Sparked: Your daughter's risk of developing breast cancer is likely reduced when you: eat foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids during pregnancy and lactation, and continue to feed her a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids after weaning. Include 2-3 servings of foods high in omega-3 fatty acids (foods such as flaxseed, flaxseed oil, canola oil, soybeans, soybean oil, walnuts, fish and shellfish) each week.

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