Breast Cancer Archive

How old you are when you go through menopause could be influenced by the foods you eat.

 Image: © stepangilev/Getty Images

Could the foods you eat help determine when you start menopause? They might, says a new study published online April 30 by the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health. Researchers found that women who ate more fish and beans and other legumes started menopause at a later age, while women who ate a diet heavy on refined pasta and rice went through the change earlier.

Why do the results matter?

How old a woman is when she goes through menopause may have implications for her health. Past research has linked certain health risks to menopause that occurs either very early (before age 40) or late (age 55 or older). Going through menopause at an earlier age has been associated with lower bone density and a higher risk for osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease, depression, and — in some instances — premature death.

It might be surprising to learn that parents can help fight childhood obesity by taking good care of themselves. A new study found that when mothers follow five healthy lifestyle habits, their kids are much less likely to become obese.

Rates of the two most common skin cancers have more than doubled over the past decade. Here's how to protect yourself.

When it comes to skin cancer, there's good news and bad news. First, the bad news. A report published in the June 2017 Mayo Clinic Proceedings found that cases of basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) skin cancers have risen 263% and 145%, respectively, over the past decade.

The good news? BCC and SCC are rarely life-threatening and they're usually easy to treat if they're caught early. Plus, there are simple ways to prevent them.

Ask the doctors

Q. I recently read about the decision by the state of California to require cancer warnings on coffee. I drink a cup a day. Should I be concerned?

A. The recent decision by a California judge to require cancer warning labels on coffee stemmed from concerns about a specific substance found in coffee, acrylamide, which is a chemical that is produced when coffee is roasted. Coffee isn't the only food or beverage that contains acrylamide. Acrylamide is produced during the high-temperature cooking process used for numerous common foods, including cookies, crackers, and potato chips, according to the American Cancer Society (ACS). But before you panic, while there definitely is acrylamide in coffee, scientists have yet to conclusively prove that this chemical causes cancer, according to the ACS. Most of the research on humans hasn't found any increased risk of cancer in people who eat foods containing acrylamide. Other studies looking at specific types of cancers have produced mixed results but found no conclusive links, according to the ACS. In addition, there is evidence that drinking coffee can bring some health benefits, such as reductions in the risks for stroke and liver disease. A 2015 study in Circulation also found that moderate coffee drinkers (defined as those having less than five cups a day) had lower risks for heart disease and neurological disease, according to the American Heart Association. So, the final message is this: if you are healthy and drink coffee moderately, there is no evidence that it's going to raise your risk of developing cancer.

In the journals

Having a low blood level of vitamin D may be linked to a higher risk of developing some cancers, suggests a study published online March 7, 2018, by The BMJ. However, taking extra vitamin D to raise already normal levels does not appear to offer more protection.

Vitamin D is made by the skin from sunlight exposure and can also be obtained through fortified foods like cereal and milk, as well as from supplements. Researchers analyzed data from the Japan Public Health Center–based Prospective Study, involving 33,736 people ages 40 to 69. The people gave blood samples and were classed into four groups, ranging from the lowest to highest levels of vitamin D. They were then monitored for an average of 16 years, during which time 3,301 new cases of cancer were recorded among the participants.

Why sleep is important to your health and how to repair sleep deprivation effects.

If sleep were a credit card company, many of us would be in deep trouble.

Medical evidence suggests that for optimum health and function, the average adult should get seven to nine hours of sleep daily. But more than 60% of women regularly fall short of that goal. Although each hour of lost slumber goes into the health debit column, we don't get any monthly reminders that we've fallen in arrears.