If you are over 30 years old, exercising an hour a week may cut your risk of breast cancer, which is the most common cancer among U.S. women according to the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recent 56th annual meeting.
192,370 women will be diagnosed with this form of cancer in 2009, according to American Cancer Society.
The good news is that mortality rate from this type of cancer are headed in the right direction - Down.
While this is great news, there are still far too many women who have to face this potentially disfiguring, often dangerous and always worrisome cancer. Which is why experts are always seeking ways that you can use to lower your risk.
And this was the reason behind the work shown at the recent ACSM meeting, a rather comprehensive look at the exercise levels (among other things) of a large group of women.
The University of Northern Colorado team questioned 4,296 women about their activity levels during four key stages of life; 10 to 15 years, 15 - 30 years, 30 - 50 years, and over 50 years.
The participants filled out a detailed survey that included questions on ethnicity, education, menstrual and pregnancy history, use of oral contraceptives and female hormones, breast health screening practices, family history of cancers, smoking history, diet, alcohol intake, stress levels as well as the amount of weekly activity.
"An average amount of exercise was defined as 60 minutes per week," stated Lisa Sprod, Lead Researcher from the School of Sport and Exercise Science at the University, "so anyone exercising less than 60 minutes was below average, above 60 minutes was above average, and anyone that considered themselves highly competitive' chose that category."
The researchers identified that breast cancer risks didn't have a relationship to the amounts of exercise under 30 years; but once a subject was over 30 her risks of developing breast cancer were lowered if she was active.
Women who were the most active during the ages of 30 to 50 years old developed cancer of the breast less often than did those who recalled being less active during that same time period.
This lowered risk carried on even as the women passed their 50th birthday, and all it needed was 1 hour of activity per week for them to lower the risk.
"Regular exercise appears to have protective effects for this age group of women," continues student researcher Sprod. "Meeting physical activity recommendations can act like a prescription for prevention when it comes to breast cancer."
These findings agree with established data that links exercise and breast cancer risk, as it relates to a constant level of activity maintained over a lifetime.
Exercise is known to have a favorable effect on hormone levels, current weight and weight gain with age, as well as immune function.
If all this has you considering getting more active, talk with your own doctor to be sure exercising is safe for you before you get started.
To start off, slow, steady progress is what you're after. 10 minutes a day for the first few weeks is a solid start. Once you're able to do this much, slowly increase the length and then the intensity of your workout.
This is the best way to avoid injury, build your endurance, and attack (and achieve) those fitness goals in manageable chunks.
Also, your added fitness could well give you greater protection against breast cancer.
192,370 women will be diagnosed with this form of cancer in 2009, according to American Cancer Society.
The good news is that mortality rate from this type of cancer are headed in the right direction - Down.
While this is great news, there are still far too many women who have to face this potentially disfiguring, often dangerous and always worrisome cancer. Which is why experts are always seeking ways that you can use to lower your risk.
And this was the reason behind the work shown at the recent ACSM meeting, a rather comprehensive look at the exercise levels (among other things) of a large group of women.
The University of Northern Colorado team questioned 4,296 women about their activity levels during four key stages of life; 10 to 15 years, 15 - 30 years, 30 - 50 years, and over 50 years.
The participants filled out a detailed survey that included questions on ethnicity, education, menstrual and pregnancy history, use of oral contraceptives and female hormones, breast health screening practices, family history of cancers, smoking history, diet, alcohol intake, stress levels as well as the amount of weekly activity.
"An average amount of exercise was defined as 60 minutes per week," stated Lisa Sprod, Lead Researcher from the School of Sport and Exercise Science at the University, "so anyone exercising less than 60 minutes was below average, above 60 minutes was above average, and anyone that considered themselves highly competitive' chose that category."
The researchers identified that breast cancer risks didn't have a relationship to the amounts of exercise under 30 years; but once a subject was over 30 her risks of developing breast cancer were lowered if she was active.
Women who were the most active during the ages of 30 to 50 years old developed cancer of the breast less often than did those who recalled being less active during that same time period.
This lowered risk carried on even as the women passed their 50th birthday, and all it needed was 1 hour of activity per week for them to lower the risk.
"Regular exercise appears to have protective effects for this age group of women," continues student researcher Sprod. "Meeting physical activity recommendations can act like a prescription for prevention when it comes to breast cancer."
These findings agree with established data that links exercise and breast cancer risk, as it relates to a constant level of activity maintained over a lifetime.
Exercise is known to have a favorable effect on hormone levels, current weight and weight gain with age, as well as immune function.
If all this has you considering getting more active, talk with your own doctor to be sure exercising is safe for you before you get started.
To start off, slow, steady progress is what you're after. 10 minutes a day for the first few weeks is a solid start. Once you're able to do this much, slowly increase the length and then the intensity of your workout.
This is the best way to avoid injury, build your endurance, and attack (and achieve) those fitness goals in manageable chunks.
Also, your added fitness could well give you greater protection against breast cancer.
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