|
Breast Cancer
and Exercise
You know
exercise helps reduce your chances of heart disease, high blood
pressure, cholesterol, obesity and diabetes. When you exercise
you sleep better and feel better. I could go on with more
benefits, but what about exercise and breast cancer? There is
evidence that exercise plays an important role in protecting us
from several kinds of cancer including breast cancer and exercise
also helps us recover faster and return to a productive life
sooner after cancer treatments.
The America
Family Physician investigated the relationship between exercise
and breast cancer concluding that “physical activity reduced the
overall risk of breast cancer in women.” One reason is because
exercise lowers a woman’s ongoing exposure to estrogen, which is
believed to contribute to cancer growth. Dr. Anne McTiernan, an
internist at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, found
that the women in her study who exercised the most had a 22%
decreased risk of breast cancer.
Weight gain
is not to be taken lightly! According to an article in the July
12th JAMA, women who gained 55 pounds or more since age
18 were at a 45% increased risk of breast cancer compared with
those who maintained their weight. Women who gained 22 pounds
were at an 18% increased risk.
What do most
of us do first when we think it’s time to lose weight? Eat less
of course. In a recent study, exercise trumped diet for weight
loss according to Judy Cameron, PhD. When we try to lose
weight by eating less but remain inactive our bodies compensate
for fewer calories by dropping the metabolic rate. Dr. Cameron’s
study suggests that it’s lack of exercise that makes people obese.
Can You
Exercise if You’re Recovering from Breast Cancer?
Weight
training can be an effective treatment for breast cancer
patients. Cancer patients who exercised experienced fat loss, a
decrease in nausea and fatigue, higher self-esteem and better
quality of life said Elizabeth Quinn of Sports Medicine Guide.
A recent review of the effect of aerobic exercise on quality of
life among recently treated breast cancer survivors indicated an
effect only half as large as the effect noted from six
months of strength training.
Dr. Ohira of
the University of Minnesota evaluated the efficacy of weight
training to improve depression and quality of life in breast
cancer survivors. Compared to no exercise, weight training
improved the women’s overall physical and psychosocial quality of
life. Significant improvements in lean body mass and upper body
strength had the greatest impact on symptoms. “Changes in body
composition and strength may empower these women with a sense of
return to feeling in control of their bodies and may translate
into feeling greater efficacy in other areas of life.”
Can Weight
Bearing Exercise Reduce or Prevent Lymphedema
Lymphedema is
a painful swelling of an affected arm after breast cancer surgery
that involves the lymph-nodes. Kathy Schmitz, PhD, MPH, from the
University of Pennsylvania conducted a study of the benefits of a
progressive program of strength-training for breast cancer
survivors. Dr Schmitz believes that not only is strength-training
safe, it also lowers the body fat percentage and risk factors for
chronic diseases such as osteoporosis, hearth disease and
diabetes.
Whether you
are preventing, treating, recovering or surviving breast cancer …
as women we are all on the same team in this fight. Are you ready to step up your exercise goals?
At Ladies Fitness Express of Abingdon we personalize your routine to fit your
needs. In fact, we make your routine anything but … boring and
routine!
|