How much does where you live impact your risk of getting cancer? Do wealthier countries fare better when it comes to breast cancer rates?
March 8th is International Women’s Day. This is a day to celebrate the amazing contributions of women around the world.
The day was created over 40 years ago as a vehicle for highlighting the on-going worldwide struggles of women and girls for equality, safety, and freedom… including the ability to lead healthy, cancer-free lives.
What International Women’s Day Means
This year, International Women’s Day is being organized by the United Nations (UN) as part of its 2030 Agenda. The 2030 Agenda consists of 17 goals that cover every aspect of human life on the planet − including gender equality and health.
Goal #3 is designed to “ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.”
Goal #5 claims to strive to “achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.”
These goals sound great, right? After all, 2/3 of the world’s illiterate people are female and 1/10 of all people lack access to safe drinking water. So any progress that involves providing for these bare-bones necessities (which 2030 Agenda claims to have plans to do) seems like a wonderful thing.
What is concerning, however, is how “progress” often comes with the adoption of “Western” nutritional and lifestyle habits.
Again and again, statistics confirm that when individuals in developing countries adopt the eating and lifestyle patterns of industrialized peoples, this change inevitably comes with a decline in overall health and a subsequent increase in lifestyle-induced diseases such as cancer.
Breast Cancer Rates and Modern “Progress”
The rhetoric of the UN paints a picture of those in developing countries as the “unfortunate” ones when it comes to health. Actual studies of populations before and after Western influence say something slightly different when it comes to breast cancer health.
Breast cancer statistics from the World Cancer Research Fund:
- Breast cancer remains the number one cancer-related death in women worldwide. In 2012, there were 1.7 million new breast cancer cases discovered globally.
- Also in 2012, the “Top 20” countries for breast cancer rates were all industrialized regions. Belgium had the highest rate of breast cancer, with Denmark and France not far behind.
- The highest incidence of breast cancer occurred in North America and Oceania (Australia & nearby islands). The lowest incidence occurred in Asia and Africa.
- There were fewer cases of breast cancer diagnosed in developing countries overall than there are in the developed world, although that disparity is gradually shrinking.
- The amount of alcohol consumed is a major determining factor for breast cancer risk for all women globally. The higher the number of drinks per day, the higher the risk of breast cancer, regardless of geography. One example is in Brazil, where in 2012 it was estimated that 22% of breast cancers were directly related to high alcohol consumption.
Breast Cancer Rates in Asian Women in the U.S. vs Abroad
It is a fairly well-known fact that breast cancer rates can be up to six times lower in most Asian countries than in the U.S. and Europe, largely attributed to diet and lifestyle. Low breast cancer rates in China and other Asian countries, for example, are connected (in part) to high consumption of green tea.
But what happens to first and second generation Asian-American women? Do those who immigrate to the United States and Europe as children or are born in the West maintain low breast cancer rates as well?
Sadly, the answer is “No.”
A study conducted by the University of Southern California looked at breast cancer rates between the years 1988-2004. Researchers discovered that Chinese and Filipina women born in the U.S. had invasive breast cancer rates that were roughly 80% and 30% higher respectively than their foreign counterparts.
During this same time period, there was virtually no difference in breast cancer incidence rates between U.S.-born and foreign-born Japanese women. The researchers speculated that this was caused by lifestyle changes in that country that began over 50 years ago.
Lifestyle-risk factors for women living in Japan have been basically on-par with those for United States white women since World War II. This is when many Japanese women entered the workforce and the birthrate plummeted. These two factors, along with higher socioeconomic status, higher body fat levels, and higher stress levels have created a steady rise in breast cancer rates among Japanese women living in Japan. This is especially evident during the years 1988 to 1999.
The African Gut vs the European Gut
Another study, published in the National Academy of Science in 2010, took a look at the underlying causes of diseases like cancer. Researchers analyzed fecal material from children living in rural Western Africa and children living in Europe.
The researchers found a huge difference in gut bacteria diversity between the children in the African region of Burkina Faso and European children. The children in Burkina Faso subsist in large part on a traditional millet-sorghum porridge called Tō and other regional edibles. The European children ate a typical western diet. Two significant differences were the number of short-chain fatty acids (the children from Burkina Faso had more) and the number of gram-negative bacteria (the European children had more).
According to the researchers: “Our results suggest that diet has a dominant role in shaping the gut microbiota. We can hypothesize that the reduction in richness we observe in EU compared with BF children, could indicate how the consumption of sugar, animal fat, and calorie-dense foods in industrialized countries is rapidly limiting the adaptive potential of the microbiota.”
These findings are significant because of the important role the gut plays as the first line of defense against diseases like breast cancer. Substances in the gut do everything from regulating our immune system to balancing our metabolic functions. And, diversity where bacteria is concerned is the key.
The Impact of Western Lifestyle on Breast Cancer Rates
Ironically, it has been by looking specifically at breast cancer statistics between women in Asia and the United States that factors such as environmental pollution, dietary habits, and stress began to be taken seriously by the scientific community as possible causes for cancer and other disease.
According to the USC researchers:
“Higher breast cancer incidence rates among Asian women living in the United States than among those living in Asian countries, together with elevated breast cancer risks associated with immigration to and longer residence in the United States, have been centerpiece evidence for major roles for environmental, non-genetic factors in breast cancer causation.”
Indeed, it has been because of intercontinental studies such as those in Asia and Africa that the field of epigenetics was born. Unfortunately, this knowledge comes at the cost of thousands of women’s lives. It is my hope that the creators of International Women’s Day and 2030 Agenda will include the common sense wisdom of traditional diets and lifestyles in their efforts towards “progress” around the world.
Article Summary
March 8th is International Women’s Day. The day was created over 40 years ago as a vehicle for highlighting the on-going worldwide struggles of women and girls for equality, safety, and freedom… including the ability to lead healthy, cancer-free lives.
“Progress” is often thought to be the adoption of “Western” nutritional and lifestyle habits. However statistics show that when people in developing countries adopt Western eating habits and lifestyle, overall health declines and there is an increase in lifestyle-induced diseases such as cancer.
The “Top 20” countries for breast cancer rates in 2012 were all industrialized regions.
Breast cancer rates can be up to six times lower in most Asian countries than in the U.S. and Europe. This is largely attributed to diet and lifestyle, including a high consumption of green tea.
Factors such as environmental pollution, dietary habits, and stress increase cancer risk.
How poignant it is that so many women (and men) seek to emulate and adopt the Western lifestyle. We already know, as you point out, how unhealthy it is. The environmental pollutants acting as xenoestrogens (fake estrogens) add to the effect of unhealthy food, lack of physical activity and stress! Happy International Women’s Day.
Breast cancer exploded since contraceptive pills started being widely used in early 70-th even by teen girls. Source of xeno-estrogens could be beauty products as well: soaps, shampoo, creams, sun-blocks, hair die.
We must also acknowledge the effects of inescapable environmental toxins in all that we eat, drink, and breathe.
What about the lack of breastfeeding? I’m surprised that wasn’t mentioned because it significantly lowers breast cancer risk. That definately is a vital part of nutrition too. We all know that the lack of it has consequences.
The Life expectancy in Burkina Faso is around 55 years. Life expectancy in France (despite this tremendous amount of breast cancer) is 82 years. Where would you like to live? And, why don’t you connect age and cancer in your article? The longer you live the highest the percentage of cancer appearance you have in your organism… Where do you live Dr V.?
Diet is extremely important but it is not enough. I would like to stress the importance of vitamin D3 and K2 MK7 supplementation because all people suffer from too to 25 (OH) D3 serum levels/ Another thing is iodine which due to Wolf and Chaikoff atricle is banned but food is lacking of iodine. If somebody is interested in knowledge about \iodine I recommend fabulous book written by Lynn Farrow “Iodine crisis”. Anyway it is very good you do your best to get people hope.
Thank you Dr. Wlodzimierz. I agree!
A dangerous “development”
Troll
Hi Orson, Thank you for your comment. You make a good point about demographics and life expectancy. The information I was presenting in the article regarding Burkina Faso was intended to show differences in gut flora based on the two diets and raise questions about what this means for the Western diet and cancer.
My sister got breast cancer and breastfed both of her children until the age of 1. My sister is no longer with us.I do not believe that breast cancer lowers the risk of cancer. I believe in a healthy lifestyle change….Whole Food Plant Base diet, and Exercise can drastically reduce the chances of being diagnosed with breast cancer and other kinds of cancer.
They have been celebrating 8 th of March over 50 years in Russia,I love this holiday!
It is understandable why you would say so. I have known women who bf more than 6 children and still died of breast cancer. I have bf 8 children, most to almost 2yo, one to 3yo, but I take nothing for granted. The thing to realize is the bfing connection only lowers the risk. It isn’t a matter of cause and effect. It just means, statistically, women who bf have lower incidences of breast cancer. Other factors definitely matter mire, especially diet and genetically along with environment.
Dairy is not a part of the Asian culture.
Incidence of breast cancer did rise in Asian countries because of the influx of the Western diet. Asians starting consuming McDonalds, KFC etc… Generations before did not have these companies around. Tofu and Non – GMO soy is consumed regularly. Here in the U.S. it is considered taboo to consume it. People need to “educated” on the value and benefit of this consumption before making an “opinionated” statement about its danger.
American Tofu is not fermented as the Asian tofu is and thus is not good for us. I won’t touch tofu here in the U.S.
We must also admit the causative factors of “the Pill” and abortion. They are HUGE and are being ignored for the most part by the politically correct and the cover-ups by “Big Pharma”.
Dairy products. More research needs to be done to see if dairy is a factor.
I posted yesterday wrongly quoting Jane Plant as Dr. She was in fact Professor, not medical,
Could any of this also be the result of earlier detection – – combined with over-aggressive treatment, that may actually not be required as many detected “cancers” never develop into mature cancer?
Doctor Otto Warburg won the Nobel prize for demonstrating cancer cannot survive in an alkaline body… Kangendemo.com debaker7@yahoo.com for your own unit.
Thank you Dr Desaulniers for the excellent work that you do. Dr Mercola has an interesting article about the relationship between Western metal spring beds and breast cancer. Basically the concept is that the metal springs act like an antenna, attracting and amplifying electromagnetic radiation, and that this radiation can contribute to cancer. I have stopped sleeping on a metal spring bed. I also shut off the electricity in my bedroom at night. I find I sleep much more deeply and peacefully.
Dr Marcela presents a log of good info, but every time I read one of his articles (which comes almost daily) I get more depressed thinking “there’s one more thing I can’t eat or can’t do!” I like being informed and prudent, but if I followed ALL of his material, I would be living less than a cave woman life!
Patricia W.
I breast fed all four of my children, yet had breast cancer. The changes made in my lifestyle in the eighties, (no beef or pork and very little chicken), did not prevent a mastectomy in 2010. One thing I did consume a LOT of, was Soy products.
My Oncologist told me to never eat soy again…..??? Does Soy cause Cancer?
It is worth mentioning that breast cancer incidence is less in countries where bras are not worn …
I believe and have believed for years that the use of hormones in birth control pills is a major cause in the amount of breast cancer which started increasing when the birth control pills came on the market. I believe it is likely the estrogen supplementation that is at least partly to blame. Also the use of hormones by women during and after menopause. And I think that if people look at when the number of cases of breast cancer started soaring, and when the use of artificial hormones was introduced, you will see probable correlation.
Im not convinced of that…a dear friend Breast fed all 4 of her children for a year each. ..she had a healthy lifestyle and was married to a G.P. ..yet she was dead from Secondary Breast Cancer by her 41st birthday.
Referring to Jamie K.
As my mother is nowon her deathbed from Cancer I ask her what she thought about a healthy life, she said no stress, no worry (a complete waste of life force) no regrets and decide to be happy and forgive all the way round and strictly no foods sealed in plastic.
Unhealthy emotional patterns need to be addressed also. As they say about Cancer “what’s eating at you”
My wife( Indian in India) got married at the appropriate age(20), bore two sons within 2 and 1/2 years of marriage, breast fed both of them till next 6 months or more, never took contraceptive and still got breast cancer before 50!She never had a peg of alcohol till then.
What will be the comments from our experts from above?
I took her to TATA MEMORIAL HOSPITAL in Mumbai for post chemotherapy medications.The hospital is specialised for treatments of cancer patients and catering not only Indians but also patients from all countries around.
There I was attracted by a printed material in which it is written” Breast cancer does not happen from any common cause generally known till now!”
It is still a mystery!!
I am still not convinced of any reason given by any expert till now, because I take special interest on the issue!!
Any taker? Any approved statistics on the subjects by any statistician?
Dipak Bhattacharya / Delhi.
Great article with grwat points! As for lifestyle, there are some very easy effective and evidence-bssed exercises to include in our daily life such as tai chi and qigong. I am certified and guide daily/weekly/workshops/retreats utilizing these programs. There needs to be more awareness duscussions, congerences, articles, interviews. That is something I have been trying to do and experiencing resistance from the West. Collaboration is important. Things are changing. Very slowly.
To Gena64: yes I got breast cancer when I was taking bioavailable compound (I can’t remember the exact term now!) estrogen during/after menopause. I felt definite sensations in my breasts taking them, and put it down to the estrogen component. When a lump developed it seemed like part of the process and then it was diagnosed as cancer. At the time, I really thought it was the hormone treatment. Thanks.
Hormonal birth control, short term (or no) breastfeeding, aborting a first pregnancy in the first trimester, small family size are causative factors for some women.
Much research HAS been done concerning the role dairy has in breast cancers. notmiilk.com is a great resource for many of these studies and their findings. nutritionfacts.org as well as PCRM.org are also great resources concerning the role dairy plays in breast cancer.
I had a bilateral lumpectomy in 2009, followed by radiation. 3 out of 4 doctors did not recommend chemo, which was only pushed by the oncologist. In January, 2016, I was diagnosed with metastatic bone cancer. My new oncologist put me on hormone therapy. I was confused because I thought that hormones (estrogen) contribute to breast cancer. That is true, but the therapy suppresses the hormones and he said that should have been prescribed in 2009. I am taking the hormone therapy pill and go every 4 weeks for a shot to strengthen the bones and there is some improvement. My own research tells me that cancer cells thrive on sugar, so I have eliminated most of the sugar in my life. (I say “most” because I am still a breadaholic and carbs turn into sugar.) I have cut back but haven’t yet conquered the addiction, although I can go for days before needing a carb “fix”.
I know it is hard when you have little kids because their lives revolve around food and “goodies”. And growing children need carbs; but the good ones that come from fresh fruits and vegies should have priority. So cut out all the junk foods and don’t give in to their cravings for what they see on the TV, especially those sweetened cereals. They should be outlawed!!
Orson-
These rates have all been corrected for lifespan, so that’s not the reason. Also the point isn’t “Should I move to Burkina Faso tomorrow?”, but “What can I learn from these different cultures that will make my life better here?”.
It’s also true that breast cancer screening, which is promoted so avidly in the U.S. and Europe, contributes to finding cancers earlier and even cancers that don’t need to be treated. Read “Overdiagnosed: Making People Sick in the Pursuit of Health”, by H. Gilbert Welch, who says that microscopic abnormalities are often treated aggressively when they might never have developed into a life-threatening illness. This policy feeds the cancer industry, which rakes in $124 billion a year with its toxic treatments.
I have secondary breast cancer stage 4 so incurable- I feel exactly the same as your Mother and so am desperate to hold back the growth of my lesions with any vitamins or treatments I hear about .I need to find a healer or a retreat .thinking of you .deb
You need to hear my friends Lisa Clark & Jill Pitts explain what happened to them. Lisa had triple negative breast cancer and Jill is the only surviving female in her family from breast cancer. Their stories are worth listening to.
Heard about a woman who ate 5 pounds of organic carrots a day in a smoothie and reversed her stage 4 colon cancer. Heard good for breast too. Cancer loves sugar and acidity. Bovine growth hormone forced into vows to remain pregnant causes tumors. Dairy cause of prostate and breast cancer . No one talking about this!!!
About 15 years ago post menopaus, when I followed Dr. Christianne Northrupt’s recommendation for high consumption of soy/soy products, I developed huge fibroid. Once I quite the soy my fibroid and symptoms went away over just a couple of months. I have always blamed the soy consumptio for fibroid, and eat NO SOY/SOY PRODUCTS now at all.
My mother will soon be 86 her mother and one of her sisters had breast cancer diagnosed at the same exact age, My mother never breast fed her 5 kids eats a very unhealthy diet no good nutrition at all never gets Mammograms (could be part of the reason) and seems to be healthy despite her unhealthy diet.
I grew up on a farm where we had cows and drank milk every day — so did my sisters. I’m 82 drink milk every day. No fat free milk, etc. i’m in excellent health. I have a website with many cures for about all kinds of cancer. It explains ways to cure cancer and how to prevent cancer.
Make a very wise choice; go to: (cancerhealingsecrets.com). Stop eating sugar, especially soft drinks. Eat green leafy vegetables daily!
We live in a toxic cesspool. Everything we eat is wrapped in plastic. Much of what we drink is bottled in plastic. I’ve been vegetarian for ten years. I’ve eaten organic since the 1990’s. I’ve used organic body and skin care products for the last 20 years. Yet I was diagnosed with triple negative in August. I try to cut out wheat and dairy but find it extremely difficult to stick to. It seems once every two months I go on a two or three week binge of dairy and wheat. I am taking more supplements lately. Selenium, Flax Seed Oil, Apricot Kernels, sprouted almonds, beets, pineapple core, lots of cruciferous veggies, salads, soups, etc., etc. I found an oncologist who is not pushing chemo on me. I am grateful. It is difficult to cook for oneself after working all day. I’ve heard Japanese purple sweet potatoes are great for their anti-cancer properties. But one must switch up their diets seasonally. I have cut most sugar out of my diet, but was not a big user before having cut out all sugary drinks years ago.
I live in the Pacific NW where there is sun only 160 days a year and it is damp all the time. I’ve had SAD and major depression since I moved here. I am moving back to a warmer climate soon where I can get sun 320 days a year. There are overwhelming factors. I don’t think it is possible to sum it up into a nice neat little package with all the answers. It is a perfect storm in the body. We hear so many catch phrases and each have dozens if not hundreds of unique meanings. “Western Diet” Eastern Diet (usually with lots of fish containing mercury) We’re told not to eat grains. Avoid alcohol, but then we here that red wine is good for us. . . . It is overwhelming. All we can do is the best we can with the resources we have access to. . . . Family, friends, support systems, stress, grief, loss . . . . I lost six loved ones in the course of two years plus broke up with my partner of 10 years who caused me major stress. Now I’m alone and much less stressed out but dealing with TNBC alone is no walk in the park.
Today I feel good, feel my energy improving, my breast is healing slowly but steadily and I’m looking forward to another 35 years.
Change your water change your life is not a slogan but a time (40) years plus reality from the longest living people on the planet the Japanese this technology is spreading at a rate of over 15,000 units per month and others are attempting to duplicate this technology. FDA will not allow us to make health claims but the testimonies world wide is unparalleled look at Kangendemo.com and YouTube “Dr.michael dxplains the water, where else in the world have you ever heard of 6,500 doctors agree about or endorse anything including world renowned Dr.Shina who lost his wife to cancer inventor of the colonoscopy device he won’t even treat you unless you drink this water and he has no vested intrest financially
Dairy and animal products are huge promoters of cancer!! T. Colin Campbell came across this while in China and published the results in his book The China Study.
Has there been any links found between the use of chemicals in underarm deodorants/antiperspirants that could contribute to theses alarming rates of breast cancer? Whatever chemicals we put onto our bodies is absorbed through our skin, especially something applied on a daily basis.
There is a book by Dr. Jane Plant, who suffered recurring cancer. “Your Life in Your Hands” she was convinced that dairy products caused cancer, having worked in China where incidents of breast cancer were low and little or no dairy was consumed. She remained cancer free once she eliminated dairy. Who knows what causes cancer, so many theories.
Elizabeth, if you are a carb addict, you might want to try making sourdough bread. It takes some getting used to, but it isn’t hard to make, and it becomes a pleasant way to still eat bread with lots less carbs. Watching youtube can get you started. Just a thought to consider!
As a breast cancer survivor I think we should be looking at birth control pills and HRT as well as women trying to get pregnant using hormone to make them drop more eggs for fertilization. This is western civilization trying to fix what will cause another problem just listen to drug commercials.
Yes!
Hi, where can I find their stories?
@ Elida – I have dozens of women to speak with you about their results with breast cancer. They can speak to you live! Are you interested in engaging with them?
Excellent. I just logged on to say that. I recently attended the annual conference of the American Institute for Cancer Research – focus on Nutrition. Sadly NO mention at all about food additives – artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives. Certainly NOT on GMOs. I raised the issue there and got a response from Walter Willett, PhD, Harvard School of Public Health. He said:”That is hard to study”! Ridiculous for so many reasons but one is that I asked this of researchers in 1995 – 21 YEARS ago. UGH.
Dzuro1, What did your friend Lisa with triple negative do? I am interested since that’s what I’m dealing with now. Was she able to heal herself?
Lisa is doing fantastic. Actually, I think the best thing to do is to speak with her directly. How can Lisa & I reach out to you? Email me at dzuro@att.net.