Breast Health Tips

Don’t do random breast massages. Regular screening is more effective than taking any health supplements. 90% of breast swelling and pain have nothing to do with cancer. Don’t scare yourself.

I have seen too many cases of paying IQ tax over the years. Last month, there was a 28-year-old girl who had a 5,000-yuan "knot-removing package" at a beauty salon. After half a month of pain, she couldn't lift her arm. After a color ultrasound, it was found that the original type 3 benign nodules had not disappeared, but there were several more cystic hyperplasia. In fact, the structure of the breast is like a bunch of small grapes hanging on the breast. Masseurs with strong hands can crush the grapes, and tissue fluid accumulates inside to form cysts. If there are undiscovered malignant nodules, vigorous massage may even accelerate the spread of cancer cells.

Of course, this does not mean that all massages that touch the breasts are useless. If you feel uncomfortable with bloating before menstruation, gently rub your chest twice, or find a regular Chinese medicine practitioner to massage the Tanzhong and nipple points to relax them. This can indeed relieve the discomfort. There are also Chinese medicine colleagues around me who would recommend this light intensity of daily health care, but at the end of the day The line must be kept: You must not believe the propaganda of "unblocking breast ducts", "removing residual milk" or "rubbing off nodules". There is currently no evidence-based medical evidence to support that massage can eliminate breast nodules. On the contrary, I encounter two or three emergency cases of inflammation and abscess caused by violent massage every month.

Rather than spending money on beauty salons and internet celebrity health products, what you should really spend your time on is regular screening. Last year, I met a 26-year-old Internet operator who stayed up late every day to catch up on projects. A physical examination at her workplace revealed type 3 nodules. She thought it would be troublesome to go to the hospital, so she blindly bought "breast care pills" online and took them. Three months later, the nodules had doubled in size and she went straight to 4a for a puncture biopsy. She suffered a lot. The screening standards generally accepted by domestic breast departments are actually very simple: women under the age of 35 can do breast ultrasound once a year. Women aged between 35 and 40 can choose whether to add mammography based on their family history and their own circumstances. Those over 40 can have a color Doppler ultrasound every year + a mammogram every 1-2 years. If a direct relative has had breast cancer, just advance the screening time by 5 years. It doesn’t cost much or takes up time. It’s really more reliable than any health care product.

Oh, by the way, there are many girls who search Baidu when they feel a lump or pain, and apply for breast cancer according to the symptoms. Last week, a young girl who just graduated cried and came to register, saying that she had been in pain for almost a week and could not sleep well. The result was that it was ordinary breast hyperplasia, which was related to the fact that she stayed up for most of the moon to study for her graduation thesis and drank iced milk tea every day. Of course, this does not mean that pain should not be taken seriously at all. If the pattern of pain suddenly changes - for example, it used to only hurt before menstruation, but now it hurts throughout the month, or you feel a hard lump that was not there before, or there is sudden bloody discharge from the nipple, then you must go to the hospital in time and don't bear it.

Many people come to me and ask me whether soy products can be eaten. This is actually quite controversial. A few years ago, there was indeed a view that the isoflavones in soybeans are phytoestrogens and will aggravate hyperplasia. It is recommended to avoid exposure to them. ； But now more large-sample studies have shown that phytoestrogens are regulated in both directions. When the estrogen in the body is low, it can supplement it, and when it is high, it can help reduce it. It is perfectly fine to drink soy milk and eat tofu normally. However, if you have severe breast nodules or have significantly high estrogen levels, some clinicians will recommend that you drink less soy milk with a particularly high concentration and not take soy isoflavone supplements indiscriminately. You can just follow the doctor's advice based on your own situation, and there is no need to talk about the discoloration of soy products.

There is also the issue of wearing underwear. Don't believe the nonsense that "not wearing underwear will cause sagging" or "wearing adjustable underwear can shrink accessory breasts". Breast sagging is mainly due to the relaxation of the suspensory ligaments of the breasts caused by age, pregnancy and breastfeeding, and gravity. It has nothing to do with whether you wear underwear or not. Accessory breasts are mostly congenital fat or breast tissue. Wearing adjustable underwear will compress the breast glands and aggravate swelling and pain. To be honest, as long as the underwear is comfortable for you, it doesn’t matter even if you don’t wear it at home. Don’t choke yourself for the so-called “beauty”. It’s not worth the gain.

Finally, I would like to say a few words. I have seen too many girls who have too high requirements for their breasts. They need to be big, firm, and have no lumps to the touch. They become extremely anxious when they are slightly uncomfortable. In fact, breast hyperplasia and small benign nodules are very common, just like the occasional acne on the face. You really don’t need to take it too seriously. Staying up less late, sulking less, and checking regularly are more effective than any sky-high-priced skin care products.