Estrogen is an important female hormone with many health implications. According to Cornell University, it has long been known that breast cancer risk rises with increased cell exposure to estrogen. Because of this link, many women are understandably concerned with lowering their estrogen levels. One factor that influences your body's estrogen level is your diet. Although diet alone cannot fully prevent breast cancer, it seems that certain dietary changes can help lower your estrogen, which can help decrease your breast cancer risk.
Step 1
Reduce your fat intake. Cornell University notes that a low-fat diet seems to reduce body estrogen. To decrease your own estrogen level, cut down on high-fat foods such as butter, cream, ice cream, mayonnaise, creamy salad dressings, fatty meats, chips, pastries and fried foods.
Step 2
Eat more high-fiber foods, such as whole grains, fruits and vegetables, which have been found to effectively reduce estrogen in those who eat them regularly, says Cornell University. It seems that fiber binds to estrogen in your bile and helps eliminate it from the body. Include plenty of fresh produce in your meals and snacks, and switch from refined starches -- white flour breads and rolls, white rice, white pasta -- to whole grain products such as whole-wheat bread, brown rice and whole-grain pasta to increase your daily fiber intake.
Step 3
Try eating kelp, a seaweed that is common in the traditional Japanese diet. The University of California-Berkeley's "Berkeley News" reports that recent research conducted at the university showed that a diet including kelp lowered estrogen levels in rats, suggesting it might reduce estrogen in people as well. Certain antioxidants in kelp might be responsible for its estrogen-lowering properties. Kelp can be found in Japanese food or in powdered supplement form.
References
- Cornell University Program on Breast Cancer and Environmental Risk Factors; "Whole Grains..."; June 2000
- Cornell University Program on Breast Cancer and Environmental Risk Factors; "Estrogen and Breast Cancer Risk..."; July 2002
- "Berkeley News"; "New Study Finds Kelp Can Reduce Level of Hormone..."; Sarah Yang; February 2005
