Having Children Lowers Breast Cancer Risk

In a new scientific study, researchers have shown that having children significantly reduces the risk of breast cancer. If you couple this with breast feeding (which also lowers breast cancer risks) you have some pretty startling scientific findings.

What is really interesting, regarding the lowered breast cancer risk is that it isn't anything that the mother's body is doing that causes the effect, but rather cells that are being transferred from the baby to the mother. The process is known as "fetal micro-chimerism" and can be described as fetal cells that are left behind after pregnancy and delivery. Wow, (and I had heard childbearing referred to as "parasitic") I like this description much better. Who would have imagined that the actual process of pregnancy is beneficial to the mother?

Fetal Micro-Chimerism (or FMc, for short) has been shown to exist up to thirty-eight years after giving birth. Likewise, maternal cells are also detected in children for many years. The transference of these cells is what scientists now believe protects and lowers the risk of breast cancer in women.

My first thought when learning about this was the relationship to stem cells. Though I don't believe in harvesting stem cell tissue (I am adamantly pro-life) I see that it must be the stem cells that are actually the basis for FMc. Therefore, the cells that are being transferred to the mother have great potential in protecting from many forms of cancer, I would suspect.

In addition to the protection offered by FMc, breastfeeding has also been shown to lower breast cancer risk. Scientific studies have shown that the longer a woman breastfeeds her children, the lower her risks are of acquiring breast cancer. Additionally, what is also interesting to note, is the fact that children who are breastfed also have a lowered risk of breast cancer.

However, it is important to realize that science has linked certain breast cancers with genetic disposition, in response to two genes, BRCA1 and BRCA2. For women who have changes in these genes, their risk of breast cancer is incredibly elevated, roughly 80% more likely to develop breast cancer. Also, current studies have shown that drinking alcohol (in minimal amounts) can increase breast cancer risks. With the news I have heard lately, I would imagine that it is time for women to stop drinking altogether. Additionally, to derive protection from breast-feeding, it is recommended that women breastfeed between 1 ½ to 2 years, and not the six months currently being recommended. When you combine the new research regarding FMc and the findings regarding breast-feeding, it is easy to see that breast-feeding is the best alternative for everyone. Though not all women may breast feed, it should be the first choice when possible.