Have you ever thought about your cookware increasing your risk for Breast Cancer?  Modern cookware is designed to support our fast pace lifestyle:  "no-mess and easy to clean". However, that "no-stick and easy-clean-up" comes with a high price.
Nonstick cookware is manufactured with a chemical called PFOA or C8.

The EPA is now investigating PFOA because

1. It  is very persistent in the environment
2. It is found in 98% of the blood of the general US population
3. It causes developmental and other adverse reactions in laboratory animals

In September of 1983 my father was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He was dead in 6 weeks. I remember the anguish and the frustration as the medical doctors offered no hope. I had been in practice for only 3 years and the Internet was nonexistent back then. But I recall going to the library to do research about healing cancer without toxic drugs or radiation. I also called "cancer clinics" all over North America and Mexico, trying to find a solution to my father's illness.

The human body's entire metabolic process depends on one critical factor – the pH of the plasma fluids.  The pH scale is very simple. The lower the readings on the pH scale are acidic and the higher readings are more alkaline. Through homeostasis, the body maintains a healthy plasma pH of 7.4.  Although the pH of the body will fluctuate with meals, exercise, stress, hormones and sleep, a healthy and balanced saliva pH should be between 7.0 to 7.5.

A simple principle to apply concerning health and disease is that a low pH creates an environment conducive to disease and a higher, alkaline pH promotes health.

There is no safe level of mercury. Mercury is the most toxic naturally occurring substance on the planet, yet, according to the EPA, there is currently over 1,000 tons of mercury from amalgam fillings in the mouths of Americans. Over 67 million Americans exceed the exposure of mercury vapors considered "safe" by the EPA because of the presence of amalgams in their teeth.¹

Mercury is treated as a bio-hazardous material in a dental office, but then, the uninformed and unsuspecting patient ends up with a mouth full of amalgam fillings, which are 50% mercury.

Cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts and cabbages contain many phytochemicals, vitamins and minerals. In fact, in the late 90’s, published studies indicated that there was a link between the consumption of cruciferous vegetables and lower risk for breast cancer.

More recently, the nutrients in broccoli sprouts and their protective effects against multiple types of cancer have seen renewed interest within the research community. 

One of the key components of broccoli sprouts is a compound called sulforaphane. Broccoli sprouts that are specifically 5-6 days old contain over 100 X’s more sulforaphane than the mature plant

In 2011, the September Oncology Report, found that sulforaphane suppressed breast cancer cell proliferation and growth. In fact, the research committee found that Sulforaphane inhibited the growth of cultured human breast cancer cells, leading to cell death or apoptosis.

Your Estrogen Quotient or EQ is a great place to start if you are searching for an evidence based way to balance your hormones. Your EQ helps you to understand the dynamics of the 3 major estrogens in your body. Since prolonged exposure to the stronger estrogens may increase the odds of developing breast cancer, understanding your EQ is definitely a proactive step.

There are 3 major types of estrogens:

E1 or Estrone

E2 or Estradiol

E3 and Estriol

Estrone and estradiol are the estrogens that relieve menopausal symptoms, but they are also associated with an increased risk factor for developing breast cancer. They are the more potent estrogens.

Estriol is the gentler estrogen and has the ability to protect tissues against the proliferative or "cellular growth factor" effects of the other estrogens. Measuring and knowing the ratio of these three estrogens can play a key role in assessing your individual risk for breast cancer.

If you want to know how to balance your hormones, all three estrogen levels must be identified and the Estrogen Quotient can then be determined.

This can be accomplished with a simple saliva hormone test.

According to Labrix, a laboratory that offers saliva testing, "The Estrogen Quotient is a mathematical formula developed by Dr. Henry Lemon in his studies of estriol as it pertained to Breast Cancer in humans. The ratio looks at the relationship of the cancer-protective estrogen (E3 – Estriol)) to the cancer promoting estrogens (E1 – Estrone and E2 - Estradiol). If the EQ is below 1.0, the risk of Breast Cancer is higher than that of the individual whose EQ is above 1.0. The optimal ratio that is considered most protective to breast tissue is an EQ that is greater than 1.5. Besides being used to assess Breast Cancer risk in women, the EQ may also be beneficial in determining the protective status for autoimmune diseases like multiple sclerosis."

Simply put, the higher your EQ ratio, the better.

Estriol, the gentle estrogen

According to Jonathan Wright, MD, "Most conventional physicians and pharmaceutical researchers have long dismissed Estriol as a weak and unimportant estrogen. They have considered it to be primarily a metabolite of Estradiol and Estrone, which are far more potent in producing estrogenic effects."

Estriol is in fact, very important simply because it is a weaker estrogen. Estriol’s saving power is the fact that it seems to oppose the growth of cancer, including cancers that are Estradiol and Estrone driven. Estriol, like many plant estrogens, seems to accomplish its protective role by benignly binding to estrogenic receptors in the uterus and the breast, shielding those tissues from the more potent estrogens.

European physicians are often way of ahead of us here in the states and studies conducted in Sweden and Germany have demonstrated the benefits of Estriol in menopausal women, particularly its ability to reduce the number of menopausal symptoms including incontinence, vaginal drying and thinning and hot flashes.

Since we are exposed to so many xeno-estrogens (environmental chemicals that stimulate estrogen or mimic estrogen), it is important to make sure that your EQ ratio is balanced.

What do you do if your EQ ratio is too low?

If you are pre-menopausal, dietary adjustments, endocrine support in the form of botanicals and homeopathy, and detoxification of environmental toxins will help to bring your EQ to a healthier level.

If you are post-menopausal, talk to a health care provider that understand bio-identical hormones and find a reputable compounding pharmacist.  Your doctor can prescribe a bio-identical formula of "natural hormones" that can then be formulated from wild yams. These hormones are derived from a particular wild yam that is rich in "precursor molecules" that are then easily converted into hormones. The molecular structures of these hormones are exact replicas of the hormones produced in the body and thus, function as such.

The 3 estrogens should be formulated in what is referred to as a "Tri-estrogen Formula" which replicates the ratio that is normally produced in the body:

90% Estriol, 7% Estradiol, 3% Estrone

Learning How to Balance your Hormones can involve some time and research, but it is well worth it. You will feel better, sleep better and you can rest assured that you are being Proactive with Prevention.