3 Lifestyle Changes to Minimize Your Breast Cancer Risk

Breast cancer is the second most common cancer (second to skin cancer) affecting women in the United States, according to the National Cancer Institute. It makes sense, then, that women may worry about their own breast cancer risk and if they can be doing anything to prevent this disease. 

The short answer: Yes, there are lifestyle changes that can *lower* your risk of breast cancer, but there is no silver bullet to guarantee you will avoid cancer.

“Unfortunately, cancer does not follow the rules,” says Brenda Panzera, MD, oncologist at The Mount Sinai Hospital and Lenox Hill Hospital. “Although we know that there are many ways to potentially minimize the risk of breast cancer, many women develop breast cancer despite having thought they had done everything right.”

That does not mean there is no point in making healthy lifestyle changes. For starters, a healthy lifestyle can make a difference—it’s just not a guarantee. Second of all, the same lifestyle changes that could minimize your risk of breast cancer can also help ward off chronic diseases, such as heart disease and type 2 diabetes, which are deeply attached to your lifestyle.  

How to Minimize Your Risk

Here are three key lifestyle changes that can minimize your risk of breast cancer, according to Dr. Panzera:

• Exercise: The minimum recommendation is to engage in moderate exercise for at least 150 minutes per week. It’s not fully clear why people who exercise regularly have lower rates of cancer, but there are some theories why exercising helps—by reducing inflammation, improving immune function, and helping to manage weight.  

• Eat a healthy diet: While there’s no single diet that is linked to a cancer-free life, it’s recommended to follow a diet rich in whole foods, particularly whole grains, beans and other lean proteins, fruits, vegetables, and healthy fats. A healthy diet helps control inflammation in the body, as well as helping to maintain a healthy weight. (And BTW, it’s a myth that soy causes breast cancer. In fact, soy products may lower breast cancer risk.) 

• Limit alcohol: Excess alcohol consumption is one of the biggest lifestyle risk factors for breast cancer. One reason is because alcohol can increase estrogen levels in a woman’s body, which raises the risk of breast cancer. “We know that drinking more than one alcoholic beverage per day over the course of a week could potentially increase the risk,” says Dr. Panzera.

You’ve probably heard rumors that wearing bras or deodorant can affect your breast cancer risk—but these aren’t supported by evidence. Here are more things that probably don’t cause breast cancer. 

Remember, there are many benefits of a healthy lifestyle that go beyond your breast cancer risk, but keep in mind: You can control your lifestyle, but you can’t always control whether or not you’ll develop breast cancer (or any other cancer, for that matter). 

“There are many people who feel they have done everything right. They have exercised, they've eaten healthy, they don't drink, they live the healthiest lifestyle they possibly could, and develop breast cancer,” says Dr. Panzera. “It is never a patient's fault.”