Weight Loss Benefits for Women

After a bout of breast cancer last year, I decided to lose weight. No one advised me to do this. At 175 lbs. and rising to a height of about 5′ 4″, I was well aware of the extra poundage. It was mostly around the middle, too, making me a candidate for heart disease. But it was the cancer that gave me the incentive. My thinking went thus: I have cancer cells running around my body (probably). I was too chicken to take chemotherapy, which would have killed those nasty little time bombs (maybe). If a cancer cell takes hold and tries to multiply again, I want to be in the best possible healthy condition for my body to fight it off.

Not very scientific, but the logic worked for me. When the radiation treatments ended in early February this year, I began experimenting with a combination of increasing walking and decreasing food intake. I cut out all alcohol and sweets (empty calories). The only food I allowed myself was high in protein, low in fats and salt. I found if I paid attention to the protein rather than the calories or carbohydrates, I could stave off hunger and have enough energy every day.

The other half of the weight loss “secret” formula is to increase the calorie outgo by exercising more most days. A combination of circumstances limits me to walking for my health. So, I gradually increased the length of my morning perambulation around the neighborhood. Eventually I added a second walk in the late afternoon. Then I had to increase the length of both walks to keep the weight loss going. About a pound every 7-10 days fell away without much effort.

After the first 20 pounds were gone, I had an appointment with my surgeon. The health care workers always take a blood pressure reading. To my surprise, mine had dropped into the “normal” range at last. It was more of a drop than I had seen when I started taking a blood pressure medication after the surgery. What a nice bonus, I thought.

Now, more than 30 pounds lighter, I had an appointment with the oncologist last month. He complimented me on the loss of poundage. I told him that I knew it was silly, but I hoped slimming down would somehow help me combat any more cancer attacks on my body. He surprised me with the information that weight is a definite factor associated with women’s risk of having breast cancer. And having it again. More delight!

So, in addition to have a “new” wardrobe (one that I haven’t been able to wear for years), I hope to get off the blood pressure medication, saving some money, and remain cancer-free. I learned from Kaiser Permanente’s health information that other factors influencing breast cancer are alcohol and hormone replacement therapy (both of which I indulged in just prior to the tumor showing up on a mammogram).

Mercury in Salmon

Many of us eat salmon for the health benefit of the high levels of fish oils that it and tuna contain. Not so many of us are lucky enough to be able to buy fresh fish, especially wild (not farm-raised), so we must make do with the canned variety. And we’ve been doing ourselves a favor, as it turns out. The Enviornmental Protection Agency (EPA) has studied the levels of methylmercury, a neurotoxin in fish, and found the average for fresh or frozen salmon to be 1.7 mcg per six-ounce serving (12 times less than that of light tuna.) What’s really astounding is that the level of mercury in canned salmon is too low for the EPA to measure!

Almost all the mercury in the fish you eat is not metabolized by the intestines or the liver. Instead, it goes right into your blood stream and from there, it accumulates in the tissues and remains throughout your lifetime. It is this lifetime accumulation about which people are concerned. Richard Harkness is a natural therapy specialist and pharmacist with an interest in this problem and recently reviewed it for the Knight Ridder News Service. He pointed out the EPA guidelines for eating canned tuna, which contains an average mercury level of 60 mcg per six-ounce serving, suggest eating no more than six ounces a week for children, pregnant women, and nursing mothers. You can consult with him at rharkn@aol.com.