Breast health management

Regarding breast health management, the core answer has never been the "massage detoxification" or "diet therapy breast enhancement" that are so popular on the Internet, but age-appropriate screening programs + accurate identification of daily abnormalities + proactive avoidance of care pitfalls with clear risks. Most of the remaining widely circulated folk remedies and miraculous programs are either useless, and may injure the breast glands.

When I was rotating in the breast surgery clinic last year, I met three or four girls a week who came to see a doctor because they went to a beauty salon to do "breast dredging" and suffered edema. The most exaggerated case was a 27-year-old girl who had three so-called "knot-removing massages". There was inflammatory fluid around a 1cm benign fibroma. She was in pain for half a month and dared not raise her arm. Speaking of this, some people must ask, is massage useless? In fact, the views of different disciplines are indeed different. In clinical Chinese medicine, premenstrual breast distension and pain are indeed relieved by pressing and rubbing acupoints such as Tanzhong and the root of the breast. The premise is that the force is gentle and the location is correct. However, the conclusion of evidence-based medicine in Western medicine is very clear: there is no evidence that can It has been proven that massage can dissipate breast nodules and discharge "breast toxins" - after all, there are no so-called "toxins" in the breast. On the contrary, violent massage may damage the breast ducts, aggravate inflammation, and even stimulate the original benign lesions to cause abnormal proliferation.

Compared with worrying about whether or not to massage, what is actually more worthy of everyone’s first priority is regular screening. Many people think that they don’t need to check if they are young. The youngest breast cancer patient I have ever seen was only 22 years old. Of course, this is an extremely rare case. The frequency of screening in different age groups does not need to be one-size-fits-all: for ordinary risk groups between 20 and 39 years old, a breast B-ultrasound once a year is enough. After all, the mammography target is radioactive, and young women have dense breasts that cannot be seen clearly. Women over 40 years old can do a B-ultrasound once a year and a mammography target every 1-2 years. If there is a family history of breast cancer, or a high-risk group with atypical breast hyperplasia before, it is best to advance the screening time to the age of 35. The specific plan can be determined by a specialist, so there is no need to scare yourself by blindly searching for information.

You don’t need to worry blindly at home. Just touch it when taking a shower. Pay attention to pressing it with your fingertips when it is flat, not grabbing it with your hands - anyone who pinches it can feel the "lumps", which are normal breast glands. If you feel a clear hard lump, have nipple discharge when not breastfeeding, or have sunken or orange peel-like changes in your skin, go to the hospital immediately. Don’t scare yourself by searching Baidu at home, and don’t go to a beauty salon to find a so-called “conditioner” to fool around with. After all, 90% of breast lumps are benign, and the cure rate is very high if there is a real problem if it is detected early.

In fact, there are more pitfalls than you think. For example, many girls like to wear bras that push up the auxiliary breasts. It is okay to wear them once in a while to make the breasts look concave. If you wear them every day and your chest hurts, it may really compress the breast ducts. I met a girl before who wore tight push-up bras for three days in a row for a wedding photo. In the end, the ducts became inflamed and so painful that she couldn't even wear a T-shirt. There are also those essential oils and ointments that claim to be able to enlarge breasts. Most of them secretly add artificial estrogen. You may feel bloated after using them for a short period of time, but long-term use will greatly increase the risk of breast lesions. There is really no need to pay this IQ tax.

When it comes to diet, there are definitely people who are concerned about whether soy products such as soy milk and tofu can be eaten. The current mainstream view in the academic circle is that normal consumption is absolutely fine. The isoflavones in soybeans are phytoestrogens, which can regulate estrogen levels in the body in both directions and are good for the breast glands. Unless you eat the purified soy isoflavone health products as food, there may be risks. Of course, some Chinese medicine practitioners believe that people with obvious hyperplasia and severe swelling and pain should drink less thick soy milk. This depends on how your body feels. If you feel uncomfortable, drink less. If you don’t feel it, drink normally. Don’t listen to the wind or rain.

To be honest, I have met so many patients with breast problems. Most of their discomforts are related to their emotions and work schedules. Staying up all night for a week or quarreling with family members will cause many people to suffer from premenstrual swelling and pain. On the contrary, being less angry, staying up less late, and wearing comfortable underwear are more effective than any health products or massages. Breasts are inherently delicate organs. There is no need to make their health management too complicated. Don't mess around with it. Regular screening is better than anything else.