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Your Body Metabolizing Estrogens Properly All estrogens are not the same. Some estrogens are stronger than others. The longer you are exposed to a strong estrogen, the more likely a damaged cell will be stimulated to grow, resulting in cancer. Estradiol is the strongest estrogen that your body makes. It is made with each menstrual cycle. The fewer menstrual cycles you have, the less exposure to estradiol. Early start of menstruation, late menopause and delayed childbirth increase your risk of cancer. During pregnancy, you make a very weak estrogen called estriol. This may protect against breast cancer. Because women are choosing to have fewer children, delaying childbirth, and bottle feeding instead of breast feeding, women are experiencing approximately 200 more menstrual cycles than their mothers or grandmothers. Unfortunately, more menstrual cycles expose women to greater amounts of estrogen. To determine your risk for breast cancer, the amount of estrogen that your body makes has to be considered along with how well your body breaks down and eliminates estrogen. Proper estrogen metabolism and elimination depends upon adequate fiber intake, proper fruit and vegetable consumption, proper vitamin and mineral supplementation, essential fatty acids, and proper bowel function. Saliva testing determines the amount of free estrogen exposure. All of the estrogens can be measured. There are also tests that can determine if estrogen is being properly metabolized and eliminated. The good news is you can decrease your estrogen levels and alter how estrogen is metabolized by changing your diet and lifestyle. There are several supplements that can increase proper estrogen metabolism. Ask your doctor to help you devise a plan to maximize normal estrogen metabolism. 
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Birth Control Pills Increase Breast Cancer Risk? Not until recently has there been enough data to evaluate the risk of breast cancer and its relationship to the use of oral contraceptives. There is a 20% increased risk of breast cancer among women who began birth control pills prior to age 20. The risk continues for four years after stopping the birth control pill. All young women and mothers of teenage girls should be aware of this risk. Mothers should think before allowing their teenage daughters to start using birth control pills to control acne, breast tenderness, menstrual cramps, or irregular periods. Young women who are older than 20, but started using birth  control pills prior to age 20 should seriously consider stopping birth control pills as part of their breast cancer prevention strategy. The troubling fact is that the risk does not decrease until you have stopped birth control pills for 4 years. What should you do? I suggest that one uses birth control pills for the shortest possible duration. I suggest that no one under 20 use birth control pills for an extended period of time. For example, if you used birth control pills as a teenager but stopped use at age 20, you are at increased risk for another 4 years. Breast cancer is rare in 20-year olds. However, if you started birth control pills at age 15 and you are 35 and have used them for the past 20 years you have significantly increased your risk of breast cancer. You need to understand that most, if not all, of the symptomatic relief associated with birth control pills ( i.e. bleeding control, relief of menstrual cramps, decrease in acne, etc.) can be achieved by balancing hormones. Balancing hormones corrects the problem; birth control pills cover up the problem. |
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