Whole-Food Guide for Breast Cancer Survivors (9 page)

Iodine: Mammary Gland Gatekeeper?

The title of this section is based on a 2005 article, “Is Iodine a Gatekeeper of the Integrity of the Mammary Gland?” (Aceves, Anguiano, and Delgado), in which a strong case is made for the role of iodine in “contributing to the integrity of the normal mammary gland” through its function as both an antioxidant and an antiproliferative agent. In fact, Dr. David Brownstein, author of
Iodine: Why You Need It, Why You Can’t Live Without It
, goes so far as to state:

The chance of a woman having invasive breast cancer sometime during her life is now one in seven. The single most important nutrient to halt this progression is iodine. In fact inadequate breast iodine levels have been associated with the development of breast cancer in both animals and humans, while iodine supplementation has been shown to cause cancer cells to shift into apoptosis or programmed cell death. I have no doubt one of the reasons we are seeing such an epidemic of breast cancer is due to iodine deficiency. (pers. comm.)

There’s a wealth of data to back him up. For example, in Japan, where the population consumes approximately 14 milligrams of iodine daily from seaweed, women have one of the lowest breast cancer rates in the world (Kawamura and Sobue 2005).

Investigators observed the same phenomenon experimentally in rats, when the animals were given a potent carcinogen and then some were treated with various forms of iodine and thyroid hormone. The researchers found that the rats that received the treatment experienced almost 41 percent fewer tumors (Aceves, Anguiano, and Delgado 2005). This is a big difference!

Human studies identifying the connection between iodine deficiency and breast tumors actually date back over forty years (Eskin et al. 1967), but have been slow to come to the attention of the public. One did recently, however. Two groups of breast cancer patients were studied who had undergone biopsy but not had surgery yet. One group was given iodine and the other a placebo. Next, breast tissue was analyzed and compared after surgery. Results showed that “although tumor size did not differ between groups, a significantly lower proliferation and increased apoptotic rate [cell death] were observed in tumors from women supplemented with iodine” (Vega-Riveroll et al. 2008).

What happened exactly? In a nutshell:

• Tumor cells replicated more slowly.
  
• Tumor cells died more quickly.
  
• The growth factor known as VEGF (vascular endothelial growth factor) was diminished.
  
• Blood vessels grown expressly to “feed” the tumor in a process known as angiogenesis were fewer in number.
  

Interestingly, iodine levels began to fall precipitously in the United States in the 1970s, as breast cancer rates began to rise. In fact, iodine levels declined a full 50 percent between 1971 and 2000 (Caldwell et al. 2008). This drop began in earnest when bakers started substituting bromide for potassium iodate (a form of iodine) as a dough conditioner in baking; some manufacturers added bromide to sodas; and others used bromide in medications, flame retardants, pesticides, or some combination of these compounds. Since bromide competes with iodine for absorption (as do the elements fluoride and chorine), it’s easy to become deficient in iodine when our bodies are saturated with bromide, fluoride, and chlorine from food, water, and personal care products on a daily basis.

Assessing Your Iodine Status

The best way to discover whether you are iodine deficient is to take an
iodine loading test
(a large dose of iodine), which a holistic practitioner can provide. This test, developed by Dr. Guy Abraham, measures the amount of iodine you expel in your urine. When the body has a sufficient supply of iodine, the excess is excreted. Higher levels of iodine in urine signify lower or nonexistent degrees of iodine deficiency. In Helayne’s practice, she has
yet
to find a woman who does not test as deficient in iodine.

Sources of Iodine

Concentrated food sources of iodine are sea vegetables, yogurt, organic milk, eggs, and fish, including shellfish. We enjoy experimenting with various types of seaweed. Sea vegetables are delicious and easy to add to your diet. A few strips of kombu or wakame, boiled in water, make a simple broth to which you can add other ingredients. Adding chipped dulse to a pot of beans or other legumes boosts both nutrition and flavor. Dulse flakes, available in natural groceries, are a tasty addition when sprinkled on salads or sandwiches, while toasted nori sheets make a great snack. Toasted and crumbled nori can also be great sprinkled on popcorn.

Note of Caution about Iodine

If you have an autoimmune thyroid disease (for example, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis), you may be more susceptible to problems that can arise from excessive iodine consumption. It is very important to consult with your holistic health care practitioner before starting on a supplementation program.

Vitamin D: Not Just for Bones Anymore

If awards were given out for vitamins, vitamin D would certainly win in the popularity category. The darling of the medical and nutritional world for the past several years, this hormonelike vitamin has a host of tasks: it helps regulate calcium utilization, exerts a direct effect on both insulin and blood pressure, and helps protect bone integrity. But we’re interested in its role in maintaining healthy immunity and in normalizing cellular differentiation to help lower the risk of an occurrence or recurrence of breast cancer.

Cell Differentiation

Differentiation
is the process by which cells develop specialized characteristics. As they mature, cells differentiate to take on specific roles in the body; for example, a breast cell carries out its tasks once it is well differentiated. When cells are well differentiated, they tend not to divide as quickly. To maintain good health, keeping cells dividing at the appropriate rate is a top priority, because an overproliferation of cells with damaged DNA can lead to cancer. Vitamin D inhibits this process of overproliferation and stimulates healthy differentiation of cells (Holick 2004).

Immunity

Vitamin D is also a powerful immune system modulator; for example, we know that vitamin D is essential for activating specialized immune cells known as
T cells
(Rode von Essen et al. 2010). You’ll find more about T cells and other immune cells in chapter 7.

Protection against Breast Cancer

In population studies, vitamin D also exhibits a strong association with lowering breast cancer risk. For example, researchers who studied women in the first National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES I) found that sunlight exposure and vitamin D intake were connected to a lower risk of breast cancer about twenty years later in life (John et al. 1999).

In 2007, Cedric Garland, a prominent vitamin D researcher, published the results of two
case-control studies
(studies that examine patients who already have a disease to see if they have characteristics that differ from those of people without the disease). Garland and his colleagues noted that women with a 25-hydroxyvitamin D blood level of 52 nanograms per milliliter had half the chance of developing breast cancer as women with D3 levels lower than 13 nanograms per milliliter.

Unfortunately, most American women are vitamin D deficient, a fact we have seen repeatedly in our own practices. Women with the lowest levels tend to be older, darker skinned, and heavier (vitamin D is stored in body fat, making it less readily available for active use) (Arunabh et al. 2003). What’s more, women who use sunscreen every day or go outside infrequently are also at a high risk of deficiency, as are women on cholesterol-lowering drugs, since cholesterol is required for vitamin D synthesis. The latitude where you live also affects your body’s ability to convert sunlight into vitamin D. Many parts of the United States (particularly latitudes north of the 37th parallel north) do not get sufficient ultraviolet B (UVB) rays during the winter months due to the angle of the sun at this time, so supplementing with vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) during the winter may be particularly critical.

Most, but not all, large-scale studies show that vitamin D plays a role in lowering the risk of breast cancer. But having a reduced risk of a disease does not guarantee that you will never get it. It merely lowers your chances. As summed up in the
American Journal of Public Health
, “The majority of studies found a protective relationship between sufficient vitamin D status and lower risk of cancer. The evidence suggests that efforts to improve vitamin D status … could reduce cancer incidence and mortality at low cost, with few or no adverse effects” (Garland et al. 2006).

Assessing Your Vitamin D Status

There are two forms of vitamin D found in blood: 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) is the so-called “storage” form of D, while 1,25-hydroxyvitamin D is considered the “active” form. Most experts agree that a blood test for 25(OH)D is the best way to assess your vitamin D status, but not all agree on what ideal blood levels are. So-called “healthy levels” can range from 40 nanograms per milliliter to 125 nanograms per milliliter, depending on whom you consult. Since each of us is biochemically unique, we need different levels of vitamin D depending on age, health status, vitamin A sufficiency, calcium status, and a host of other factors.

Our Perspective on Vitamin D

While adequate vitamin D levels are important to good health, it’s equally important to guard against vitamin D toxicity and avoid its use in conjunction with specific conditions. People with
sarcoidosis
, an autoimmune condition, should not supplement with vitamin D, for example, because it can exacerbate this condition. Generalized vitamin D toxicity can also cause major health difficulties for people with liver or kidney issues. In addition, excessive D supplementation can boost levels of blood calcium too high, a condition known as
hypercalcemia
. As with all supplements, more is not necessarily better!

We support the judicious use of sunlight whenever possible and modest supplementation of vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol), if needed, combined with regular monitoring of your 25(OH)D level and serum calcium levels. A blood level of 50 to 80 nanograms per milliliter of 25(OH)D is, in our opinion, worth aiming for. Always be sure to work with a knowledgeable health practitioner to optimize and monitor your vitamin D levels.

Vitamin C

Ascorbic acid
(vitamin C) is well known as the “anti-scurvy” vitamin. Many of us remember learning in high-school biology that old-time sailors were infamous for getting this dreadful disease, caused by an extreme vitamin C deficiency, until Scottish surgeon James Lind uncovered the cure in citrus fruits.

Many of us also remember Linus Pauling, Nobel laureate and pioneering researcher on the health effects of vitamin C. Some may even be familiar with his famous trials in the 1970s and 1980s with Dr. Ewan Cameron. These trials suggested that large intravenous doses of vitamin C helped increase survival time and improve quality of life for terminal cancer patients (Cameron and Pauling 1976). Since then, the use of intravenous vitamin C as a cancer treatment has been hotly debated. But what has not been controversial is the importance of vitamin C as a helpful cancer preventative and overall contributor to health and longevity.

How does it work? Ed proposes three prevention mechanisms concerning vitamin C:

• Its intake can stimulate the immune system by increasing NK (natural killer) cell activity.
  
• It is a powerful antioxidant and therefore may inhibit carcinogenesis.
  
• It has an antihistamine effect. In animal studies, histamine and inflammation have long been associated with tumor promotion (Scolnik, Rubio, and Caro 1985).
  

Studies on the relationship between vitamin C and breast cancer risk have, thus far, produced a hodgepodge of results. Several studies found no association, while some noteworthy studies found a compelling relationship. In the Nurses’ Health Study, for example, premenopausal women who obtained about 200 milligrams per day of vitamin C from foods had less than half the risk of breast cancer of women who consumed only 70 milligrams per day (Zhang et al. 1999). The FDA’s current recommended daily allowance (RDA) for women, based on the amount needed to prevent scurvy, is a meager 75 milligrams per day, possibly lulling us into a false sense of security about this critical nutrient.

Our Perspective on Vitamin C

Vitamin C does its best work when consumed in a whole-food form, complete with the bioflavonoids that are part of the vitamin C family. Flavonoids are a class of plant compounds that not only act as antioxidants on their own but also boost the power of vitamin C and other nutrients. Citrus bioflavonoids actually help increase vitamin C absorption while working synergistically with it.

So, when it comes to vitamin C for breast cancer prevention, we encourage you to eat plenty of vitamin C- and bioflavonoid-rich fruits and vegetables. We recommend organic red peppers, strawberries, oranges, lemons, papayas, broccoli, and kale as a great starting point.

The website of World’s Healthiest Foods (whfoods.com) contains a complete listing and serves as a great reference for all health concerns, plus it’s one of our favorite sites. As this encyclopedic resource informs us, vitamin C is highly susceptible to degradation from air, water, and variations in temperature. Any type of cooking, freezing, thawing, or canning (even steaming) can cause vitamin C–rich produce to lose some of its potency. Handle with care!

For additional breast cancer protection, we recommend an additional 1 to 3 grams of vitamin C each day in supplement form. Buffered C with at least 500 to 750 milligrams of bioflavonoids is best.

Selenium

The mineral selenium is known to be another one of the most effective nutrients for natural protection from breast cancer and other cancers as well. Unfortunately, not many of us obtain the recommended dose of 200 micrograms a day.