Idea Fit Tips
Breast Cancer and Exercise
We all know the benefits of regular exercise-it's good for out hearts, our minds, our muscles, and our ability to handle stress. Now there has been a study evaluating the benefits of regular exercise to reduce the risk of breast cancer.
One in eight women in the United States will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime. It is estimated that there will be more than 180,000 new cases diagnosed this year alone. Researchers have been monitoring a group of nurses (called the Nurses' Health Study) between the ages of 30 and 55 for a number of years. Among the women in the group that exercised daily (brisk walking or jogging) there was a 20 percent reduction in the number of breast cancer diagnoses.
So take some time for yourself and go for a brisk walk. Thirty minutes a day can make a difference-in more ways than one.
- Barbara Self, MSN, CRNP is a certified Family Nurse Practitioner