b e t t e r

h e a l t h

this genetic trait could come from

either side of the family,” says

certified genetic counselor and

researcher John M. Quillin, Ph.D.,

an assistant professor in the

Department of Human and

Molecular Genetics at Virginia

Commonwealth University.

H ealth Connection

That means you can inherit breast

cancer risk from your dad too.

Women overestimate their

mother’s family history and

underestimate their father’s

impact on their relative risk. In a

recent study, Quillin found that

women were aware of 60 percent

more breast cancers on their

mother’s side than on their

father’s—a reflection of a

knowledge gap about Dad’s

female relatives. “It’s important to

know about both sides of your

family,” Quillin says.

That’s the conclusion of

University of Kentucky plastic

surgeons who studied the breast

shape of 132 women who wanted

breast lift surgery. While nursing

may not thin them out, certain

other things definitely will:

pregnancy, longterm smoking,

and aging.

H ealth Connection

You shouldn’t let myths keep you

from nursing. Its effects are

almost entirely positive.

“Breastfeeding protects by

lowering your body’s levels of

estrogen. Estrogen can fuel the

growth of some forms of breast

cancer,” Weiss says. In one study

of 2,616 women, those who

breast-fed for six months or more

lowered their odds for a rare,

aggressive type called triple-

negative breast cancer by 50

percent and of some other breast

cancers by

20

percent.

2 4 2 OCTOBER 2 0 0 9

BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS

Jessica never would

h av e g u essed

popcorn this g o o d

could b e

9

4

% fat free

Watchers

You’ll have to try it to believe it.

WEIGHT WATCHERS for sorvicos and

POINTS

are the registered trademarks of Weight Watchers International, Inc and are used with permission. ©APCC

2009

im e.co m