The 4 Dos for Breast Health from Dr. Kristi Funk, MD

October 7, 2024

Breast Health: Four Do’s
Guest Post by Dr. Kristi Funk
Beyond Meat Medical Ambassador

You have so much more control over breast cancer risk than you probably think. Did you know that less than 10 percent of cases come from inherited mutations, such as BRCA¹? Only 1 in 5 women with breast cancer has a single relative with breast cancer². So, for most women, whether or not they get breast cancer has nothing to do with it “running in the family.” Hmm… what is it then? Read on for the most evidence-based, power-packed must-do’s that minimize breast cancer risk.

#1 DO: Eat Plants

Every time you lift fork to mouth, you unleash weapons into your bloodstream that engage in the daily battle of oxidative stress, which is the war between cell-damaging free radicals and the antioxidant heroes that squelch them. Every calorie you swallow either joins the pro-cancer or the anticancer army. Science has revealed which antioxidant-rich foods can have the biggest impact in helping to reduce cancer risk³ by releasing molecules that can:

scavenge free radicals

eliminate carcinogens we consume and encounter

prevent and repair DNA damage

identify and destroy harmful cells in our bodies

inhibit new blood supply required by tumors to grow (angiogenesis)

stimulate the immune system

regulate hormone and glucose metabolism

reduce inflammation

The clear winner? Plants⁴. Vegetables, legumes (i.e., lentils, beans, peas, seeds, and some nuts), fruits, and 100 percent whole grains provide, on average, 64x the nutritional armor for your cells than animal products do.⁵ So, on the other side of the battlefield, let’s “meat” enemy number one.

#2 DO: Reduce Meat

Beef, poultry and other animal products create chinks in that armor where breast cancer cells settle and thrive; animal products increase:

estrogen (the fuel source for 80 percent of all breast cancers)⁶

growth hormones (specifically, IGF-1, which makes cancer cells grow and metastasize)⁷

angiogenesis (the formation of new blood flow to tumor cells, which they require for proliferation and eventual metastasis)⁸

free radicals⁹

immune system dysfunction¹⁰

inflammation¹¹

Even if you avoid meat from animals injected with hormones and antibiotics and fed pesticide-laden GMO feed, you can never avoid the oxidants naturally present in the meat (e.g., heme iron, trans fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, nitrates)¹².

And unless you are eating steak tartar, you probably cook your meat. Bad idea. Certain mutagens—polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and heterocyclic amines (HCAs), to be exact—are potent cancer-causing compounds that form on the surface of all grilled, smoked, roasted, pan-fried and barbecued meats¹³. HCAs form within minutes at high temperatures, but even baking chicken at lower temps for fifteen minutes leads to HCAs¹⁴ because of a chemical reaction between heat and the creatinine in muscle tissue.

If this concept is new or a bit overwhelming, start with just one plant-based meal a day. For example, try a breakfast of steel cut oats in plant-based milk, sprinkled with flaxseed, cinnamon and topped with berries, or this Antioxidant Smoothie which packs a serious anti-cancer punch. For lunch or dinner, consider a salad or grilled veggies with plant-based protein from Beyond Meat’s new fleet of tasty non-GMO products with zero cholesterol using better for you fats and less sodium than the previous version. Beyond Meat’s diverse range of products are perfect swaps for burger nights, taco Tuesdays with Beyond Steak fajitas, or whole-grain pasta with Beyond Meatballs. Beyond Meat proteins come from friendly sources like peas, brown rice, lentils and faba beans¹⁵.

#3 DO: Bust a Move

Exercise not only boosts the immune system, but it also can reduce stress, lower estrogen, prevent weight gain, and improve sleep. These positive outcomes culminate in less breast cancer occurrence and death¹⁶. Consider the following facts:

Being sedentary increases breast cancer by as much as 40% over those who exercise at moderate levels for 3-4 hours a week¹⁷.

Walking briskly for just 11 minutes a day drops breast cancer incidence by 18%¹⁸.

Even when obese, breast cancer patients who walk 30 minutes six days a week and who consume five or more daily servings of vegetables enjoy a 44% survival advantage over those who adhere to one or neither of these lifestyles¹⁹.

While running, biking, swimming and pickleball make excellent exercise choices, if sports aren’t your thing, just move more. Park farther away, take the stairs, dance with the grandkids, make evening walks a me-time routine. Start with an attainable goal like 10-15 minutes a day, and then add five minutes to each activity every week until you reach 45 minutes at a time.

#4 DO: Maintain Ideal Body Weight

Adipose (fat) cells wreak constant havoc out on that battlefield of oxidative stress, duking it out with plant-derived antioxidants. Several processes govern this fat-cancer connection:

An enzyme in fat called aromatase converts adrenal gland steroids into estrogens, which then make most breast cancers proliferate.²⁰ So, more fat = more aromatase = more estrogen = more cancer fuel.
Adipose produces and secretes leptin into circulation; leptin then cross talks with multiple genes involved with activating cancer. ²¹
Excess fat correlates with circulating insulin. Insulin directly stimulates the growth and invasion of breast cancer cells, turns on aromatase (see number 1 above), makes IGF-1 levels rise which then makes cancer cells grow, and insulin signals tumor cell angiogenesis – so insulin directly makes cancer grow, while indirectly feeding it via IGF-1 and a fresh supply of blood flow²².
Activated macrophages in the adipose tissue of obese individuals produce pro-inflammatory mediators such as TNFα and IL-6.²³ Chronic inflammation promotes cancer growth, metastatic spread, and angiogenesis. It also interferes with hormonal and chemotherapy treatments, thus worsening cancer prognoses in overweight women²⁴.

Overweight and obese women have a 50 to 250% greater risk for postmenopausal breast cancer than normal weight women.²⁵ In the United States, up to 50% of postmenopausal breast cancer deaths can be attributed to obesity. If you have already been diagnosed with cancer, gaining more than 5 to 10% of your initial weight increases the risk of recurrence and reduces survival by up to 400%²⁶. Cue the good news! If you are overweight and lose that fat, you will lose your risk²⁷.

Putting It All Together

Well, here’s a fantastic coincidence! If you prioritize plant-based eating, avoid animal products, and exercise regularly, your weight can naturally start to glide toward its ideal target. Following these evidence-based rules of engagement will maximize breast health and also have the side benefit of dramatically increasing your health overall .

It can be daunting if these diet and lifestyle practices feel foreign to you. That’s why I’ve created Pink Lotus Power Up, an entirely free site filled with blogs, recipes, educational resources, and an active online community of like-minded people interested in living their healthiest lives. I’ve also teamed up with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine to promote the Let’s Beat Breast Cancer campaign, offering free support and community as you embark on a Cancer-Kicking life. Join today and receive a free starter guide and E-cookbook as well as invitations to Let’s Beat Breast Cancer events in your area and beyond.

Dr. Kristi Funk is a board certified breast cancer surgeon & physician, bestselling author, international keynote speaker and women’s health advocate, and co-founder of the Pink Lotus Breast Center in Los Angeles where she practices as a breast cancer surgeon and expert in minimally invasive diagnostic and treatment methods for all types of breast disease. She has helped thousands of women navigate breast issues, including well-known celebrities like Angelina Jolie and Sheryl Crow.

This blog post and the recommendations made herein are provided for informational purposes only and are not intended to be used as healthcare advice. Individuals are encouraged to consult their healthcare provider with questions about their specific needs. This blog post contains links to third-party websites that are not affiliated with, owned or controlled by Beyond Meat, Inc. The references provided in this blog post are identified for informational purposes only and such references and the underlying research, including the entities and individuals involved in the underlying research, did not involve Beyond Meat products and are not affiliated with Beyond Meat, Inc.

¹https://www.cancer.org/cancer/types/breast-cancer/risk-and-prevention/breast-cancer-risk-factors-you-cannot-change.html#:~:text=About%205%25%20to%2010%25%20of,the%20BRCA1%20or%20BRCA2%20gene.

²https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3519312/

³https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26804371/; https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0002916523053406; https://journals.lww.com/eurjcancerprev/fulltext/2017/09000/Coffee_and_the_risk_of_hepatocellular_carcinoma.4.aspx

⁴https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23803026/; https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24723234/

⁵http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/pmid/20096093/

⁶https://seer.cancer.gov/statfacts/html/breast-subtypes.html; https://ascopubs.org/doi/10.1200/jco.2010.28.15_suppl.1553; https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0278691523005744#:~:text=Although%20the%20natural%20presence%20of,various%20levels%20of%20the%20residues%2C

⁷https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12433724/; https://www.cell.com/fulltext/S1550-4131(14)00062-X

⁸https://www.pnas.org/doi/pdf/10.1073/pnas.0803943105; https://genesandnutrition.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12263-019-0645-7#:~:text=High%20transcript%20levels%20of%20PPARγ,with%20the%20feature%20of%20ALNM%2B.;

⁹https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2161831322001508

¹⁰https://www.thelancet.com/journals/ebiom/article/PIIS2352-3964(21)00592-2/fulltext; https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/immunology/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2020.574500/full

¹¹https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31405384/; https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9036757/; https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S247529912320832X; https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15051604

¹²https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17045417/; https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26505173/; https://www.ucsfhealth.org/education/cholesterol-content-of-foods; https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20209147