6 Scientifically Backed Ways To Support Your Breast
6 Scientifically Backed Ways To Support Your Breast
Written by: Victoria Williams R.H.N.
Victoria Williams R.H.N.
Victoria is Head of Operations at Queen of the Thrones®. Victoria obtained a Pre-Health Science Certificate with Honours from Georgian College, which ignited her passion for natural wellness and nutrition.
Full bio
Medically reviewed by: Melanie Swackhammer B.A.
Est. reading time: 7 minutes.
What Circadian Rhythm, Castor Oil and Walnuts Have in Common for Breast Wellness
“I learned to put myself first.”
“It was up to me to decide what to do with my life.”
You’ll hear phrases like this from women who’ve made significant lifestyle changes following breast cancer. Can you relate?
Or maybe right now, you or the people you serve are wondering, “how can I keep my breasts healthy?”
You see, it’s fairly common for a health scare to shock people into re-examining their lives and what matters most to them. Breast cancer is no exception, and it’s understandable.
Breast health can help you look at your life differently. In fact, on an energetic level, breast issues can correspond to an imbalance of nurturing energy, usually focused on the self. So if you’re reading this now, or if you have breast concerns or discomfort, you could look at this as a time for reflection on how you can take better care of you – and especially the wellness of your breasts.
The old adage “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” is highly relevant for breast troubles. Perhaps you’ve also heard the phrase, “a pill for an ill”. Can you relate?
Before giving away the reason behind this statement, let’s first look at a surprising statistic.
About 30 to 40% of breast cancers are linked to lifestyle factors.1
Yes. That’s true. While many believe breast disorders/conditions are genetic, hereditary connections are only responsible for less than 10% of the cases.2
However, there are lifestyle changes you can make right now to support your breast health.
Of course, it might be difficult to talk about your breasts and any changes you’ve observed. The breast is loaded with cultural meaning and importance, so yeah – talking about your girls is a little different from discussing changes in say – your feet. . . though feet are important too.
You may even avoid examinations like mammograms or thermograms because you’re worried about discovering something abnormal.
But, visiting your healthcare professional is the best way to understanding your unique body and the best steps to take.
So, with this in mind, let’s look at a few things that can influence your breast health.
The link between inflammation and breast health
You may have noticed soreness or pain in the breasts, especially around your menstrual cycle. You aren’t alone. These symptoms affect two-thirds of women, especially during the childbearing age.3 Are you wondering why this happens? Well, the answer lies in the breast structure.
You see, breasts comprise four main tissue structures:
- Fat tissue
- Milk ducts
- Glands
- Connective tissue
The fat tissue is influenced by fluctuations in fluid volume. So, this can cause your breasts to swell, resulting in soreness or tenderness, especially right before your cycle when estrogen levels increase.
“What causes increased fluid?”
A common cause for increased fluid volume is inflammation. Inflammation is kind of like a fire, and what do you use to put out a fire? Water.
Inflammation is part of your body’s process of fighting against things that harm it (like infections) in an attempt to restore balance.
So, when something damages your cells, your body releases chemicals that trigger an inflammatory response from your immune system. It’s a natural process, but in today’s modern world, inflammation is often out of control.
Did you know that lymphatic blockage can also cause inflammation?4
Lymph vessels are hollow tubes in your lymphatic system that allow lymph fluid to drain out of your breasts. But, if your lymph vessels are blocked, this can cause your breast to become red, swollen, and inflamed. Makes sense, agreed?
Swollen lymph nodes may also be present under the arm, near the collarbone, or both. Disturbed sleep can also contribute to breast inflammation.
So, let’s dive into more about this and the connection between your…
Circadian rhythm and breast health
Imagine having a hectic week, with only four hours of sleep every night for 7 days in a row. Sounds pretty terrible, right? You’d probably be irritable, frustrated, or even sad, agreed?
But, sleep isn’t only about the quantity, it’s also about quality. Even if you can sleep eight hours a day, but you wake up every two hours, you’ll wake up in the morning feeling exhausted. Is this you?
This is because your body’s internal 24-hour clock runs in the background and regulates your sleep-wake cycle, hormones, and even cell division.
But, if your sleep-wake cycle is off, so is your circadian rhythm.
Circadian rhythms are physical, mental, and behavioral changes that follow a 24-hour cycle and they can affect hormones, body temperature, and digestion, not to mention how you feel when you’re sleep deprived or experiencing jet lag.
You see, different systems of your body follow circadian rhythms that are synchronized with a master clock in your brain.
This master clock is directly influenced by environmental cues, especially light, which is why circadian rhythms are tied to the cycle of day and night. Makes sense, right?
When properly aligned, a circadian rhythm can promote consistent and restorative sleep.
But, when your circadian rhythm is thrown off, it can create significant sleeping problems, including insomnia. Does this sound like you?
Research also reveals that circadian rhythms are integral to diverse breast health aspects5. Now, beyond sleep, have you ever wondered if there’s a connection between your gut health and breasts?
Gut microbia and breast health
Gut microbia are microflora in your digestive tract. While it may sound dangerous, these bacteria are helpful and regulate various body functions.
From protecting against disease-causing bacteria to regulating immune function, these bacteria support your health in various ways.6
In fact, your gut bacteria influences estrogen metabolism and adiposity, which are both associated with breast health.
Immune interactions with gut microbiota and microbial effects on host DNA also play a role in developing breast conditions. More specifically, a healthy gut microbiota has shown to play an important role in breast health because when estrogen is processed and released through your liver as bile, it ends up in your gut. If your gut bacteria are balanced and thriving, they may help control these estrogen molecules and keep them from creating carcinogenic problems in breast tissue.20
So, keeping your gut microbiota healthy and thriving can also support better breast health.
Would you love to know more about how to balance your gut bacteria?
How can I keep my breasts well?
Now that you know the importance of breast health and the influencing factors, let’s look at four things you can do to support your breast wellness. Are you ready?
1. Eat healthy because food matters
You are what you eat. Have you heard this before? Some ways you can support your breast health nutritionally are:
- Limiting your sugar intake
- Eating whole foods including healthy fats, hearty proteins, and heaps of vegetables
- Avoiding processed foods
- Drinking plenty of water
- Eating foods rich in flavonoids, such as broccoli, onions, celery, parsley, and green tea
- Increasing your intake of nuts – especially walnuts
2. Get good quality sleep
Getting adequate sleep is one of the crucial steps to naturally support your breast health. Start by…
- Having a consistent daily sleep routine: It’s ideal to sleep and wake up at the same time every day. This will help your body restore any imbalance and also help restore your circadian rhythm.
- Being active: Regular exercise supports melatonin production, your sleep hormone. It can also sync your other body systems with your circadian rhythm.7
- Avoiding caffeine in the evening: Caffeine is a stimulant that can keep you awake.
- Limiting screen time: The blue light from your tablet/cellphone alters your melatonin production, disrupting your circadian rhythm.8
- Wearing a Castor Oil Eye Compress to bed: Using this compress makes you feel relaxed as your Eye Compress gently blocks out distracting lights. Some studies show that wearing an eye mask to bed may help support melatonin production.9,10
3. Use a Castor Oil Fascia Massage Roller to enhance your lymphatic flow
Did you know that a well-functioning lymphatic system is crucial for your breast health? It’s true! Keeping the lymph flowing through the lymph nodes in your breasts can support breast health by keeping inflammation low and, as a result, keeping your lymph nodes from getting clogged.
The good news: there are multiple ways to support your lymphatic system, including a Castor Oil Fascia Body Roller.
You see, a Fascia Body Roller helps you do a gentle massage around your breasts so you can naturally support blood supply to your muscles, support the movement of lymphatic fluid, and assist in removing toxins from your body.
The network of lymph is directly connected to the fascia, which sits right underneath the skin.
So, fascia body rolling may help relieve muscle tension, activates your lymphatic system, and reduces pain and soreness. Plus, adding Castor Oil can further boost the benefits of the roller.
4. A simple massage can make a difference
Did you know that healthy breasts largely come from having a healthy liver?
According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, negative liver emotions such as frustration, anger, and resentment can result in the accumulation of toxins in the body, adversely affecting your breasts.14
So how can you easily support your liver?
Massaging the liver aids in the removal of stagnated toxins15, protecting and supporting breast health.
Plus, wearing a Castor Oil Pack for Liver may also support breasts… But how? Read on!
Firstly, it’s mechanical, with the compression of the pack placed over the liver (under your right rib cage), in combination with the movement of your breathing muscles.
This may act like a pump to your lymphatic system, encouraging lymphatic drainage. Amazing, agreed?
Secondly, it’s neurological, because when the pack is placed on specific dermatomes, this activates the somatic visceral reflexes triggering the activity of internal detox and cleansing organs like the liver, kidney, gut, gallbladder, and more.16
Thirdly, the combination of both mechanical and neurological factors work because the pack stimulates the body’s skin receptors and natural oxytocin feedback loop. This helps activate the vagus nerve and help shifts your body into a rest and digest state17 where liver detox is optimized.
This direct effect of the Castor Oil Pack compress stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system. Plus, the penetration of the Castor Oil into your tissues may support inflammation balance.
Plus, the penetration of the Castor Oil into the tissues may help reduce inflammation via the Peyer’s patches.18
So, without the pack, Castor Oil will not penetrate as deeply and will instead act much more like a skin emollient. So, as you can see, you need the pack to experience the full range of benefits.
But, even though the Castor Oil Pack is traditionally worn over the liver for breast health, you can also wear Castor Oil Packs over your breasts.
However, don’t use the same pack for your liver as you do your breasts.
It’s unknown whether toxic substances are released via the skin with Castor Oil Packs, especially over the liver since it’s the hub for toxic cleanup in the body. So, to prevent the transfer of toxins to more sensitive areas, only use designated packs on the respective area.
Queen of the Thrones® Castor Oil Packs for Breasts come in 2 comfortable sizes – Small or Large.
Would you love to know how you can use Castor Oil to support your breast health? Click the button below to get 2 easy DIY Castor Oil recipes so you can support your breasts and lymphatic flow. Amazing, agreed?
5. Eat walnuts for breast wellness
While there is some truth to this supposition, it’s important to understand that there are also some dangers. But when it comes to the health of your breasts, recent research has shown that walnuts can actually be beneficial for women with breast cancer. 18, 19
So, in this case at least, the Doctrine of Signatures really has some validity. Have you ever looked at the meat of a walnut? It bears a pretty close resemblance to blood vessels and glands in breast tissue.
6. Go blissfully bra-less
Medical anthropologists Sydney Ross Singer and Soma Grismaijer did a study and described their findings in their book titled, Dressed to Kill. They came up with some interesting evidence suggesting that there might be a correlation between wearing tight bras and breast cancer rates.
And it makes sense if you think about it. In fact, the Arizona Center for Advanced Medicine suggests that wearing tight bras for long periods of time can actually restrict the movement of lymphatic fluid in your breasts which could compromise breast health21.
So, while you probably don’t want to go bouncing into work braless, you might want to release the girls for a few hours every day. Better still, go for a walk braless or do other kinds of light exercise to help move the lymph through your breast tissue.
A recipe to help support better circulation and lymphatic flow
Now that we’ve described a few ways to help you support better breast wellness, why not get started today with this easy and enjoyable recipe to help you reconnect to your body through self-massage.
Self-Love Breast Massage Recipe
Ingredients:
- Queen of the Thrones® Castor Oil
- Baking Soda
- Organic Rosemary Essential Oil
Directions:
- In a small bowl, add about 3 tbsp of Castor Oil.
- Then mix in a small amount of Baking Soda to form a paste.
- Add 2-3 drops of Organic Rosemary Essential Oil.
- Once you’ve made the paste, massage the mixture onto your breasts and armpits.
- Allow it to absorb for an hour or more, then rinse.
Would you love more recipes for breast wellness? Download this free eGuide!
So, gorgeous, your breast health is in your hands. Try and add these six wellness habits as part of your life.
They will not only support your breasts’ health but also help support more energy, less stress, and a more balanced mood!
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