4 Ways to Treat Benign Lumps in the Breasts

1. Ease Period-Related Breast Pain

If you're plagued with lumpy, tender breasts before your period, take ibuprofen or naproxen sodium in the morning to treat pain and puffiness. Cut down on salty and sweet foods the week before your period to relieve breast bloating and soreness. Regular exercise--20 to 30 minutes on most days--also relieves premenstrual breast soreness and lumpiness.

2. Fine-Needle Aspiration Collapses Cysts

A fluid-filled benign cyst can be treated with fine-needle aspiration. This nonsurgical procedure is often performed in the doctor's office. The doctor uses a thin, fine needle to withdraw the fluid from a cyst. When the fluid is removed, the cyst collapses. Fluid withdrawn from a cyst is usually yellowish and contains no blood. Your doctor will send the fluid for analysis if it contains blood. Benign fluid-filled cysts can recur, so this procedure may be only a short-term solution.

3. Let Go of the Joe

Limiting caffeine may ease painful fibrocystic breasts. While there's no scientific proof that caffeine is related to painful, benign breast lumps, there is some evidence that caffeine overload may influence your hormone levels. Those hormones, in turn, can trigger changes in breast tissue and result in sore, benign lumps.

4. Boost Your Vitamin Intake

Supplement with calcium, magnesium, vitamin B-6 and vitamin E to treat benign breast lumps that are related to hormone levels. Eat low-fat yogurt, milk and cottage cheese and dark green, leafy vegetables for extra calcium, or supplement if you don't get enough calcium from your diet. Your goal is 1,200 mg of the mineral per day. Magnesium is credited with easing premenstrual breast soreness and lumpiness, so take 400 mg daily. You also may find relief by taking 50 to 100 mg of vitamin B-6 and 400 IU of vitamin E daily.

If you're not keen on taking all those vitamin pills. pile your plate with spinach, halibut, almonds, beans and lentils to increase your magnesium intake. Snack on peanuts or peanut butter for extra vitamin E and grab a banana for a B-6 boost. Baked potatoes and garbanzo beans also are good sources of Vitamin B-6.