Nutrition is Able to Protect Women from Breast Cancer

One of the diseases most feared by women is breast cancer, because it is a deadly disease and difficult to treat. So as to be aware of developing the disease yourself, fortify your body with the nutrients carotenoid potent against breast cancer.

Scientists say that women who had high levels of different carotenoids in the blood, a risk of 15 to 20 percent lower risk of developing breast cancer than women with lower levels of carotenoids.

Carotenoids are pigments responsible for the bright colors of plants. The main sources of carotenoids include carrots, which are rich in alpha-carotene, sweet potatoes and green vegetables, which are rich in beta-carotene, and lycopene-rich tomatoes.

Green vegetables are also a good source of lutein + zeaxanthin. So a diet high in carotenoid-rich fruits and vegetables can offer many benefits, including the possibility of a reduced risk of breast cancer.

Function as antioxidants and carotenoids are absorbed from the metabolism of free radical overload. If too many free radicals in the blood, this will lead to oxidative stress and prolonged oxidative stress can cause diseases such as cancer.

"So someone needs more supplies of antioxidants in the body to ward off free radical damage," says A. Heather Eliassen, the study's authors and an assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School.

One interesting finding is that there is a correlation between the level of carotenoids in the blood of breast tumor progression by estrogen receptor negative (ER-). Eliassen said that because ER-breast tumors are more aggressive will be more difficult to treat, but carotenoids may help treatment.

Researchers also found that carotenoids also effectively provide protection to women who smoke. Nicotine in cigarettes may increase oxidative stress, but carotenoids are capable of providing protection against him.

But the research also showed that the protective effect of carotenoids is more felt by women with a body mass index (BMI) lower. Being overweight is one of the sources of oxidative stress that is difficult to overcome if you just rely on diet alone carotenoids without weight loss efforts.

Researchers recommend to increase the consumption of fruits and vegetables healthy or diet carotenoids to protect against breast cancer. The results are published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.