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Lignans Offer New
Hope for 15 Million Women with Few Options
- High Levels of Lignans Linked to Breast & Reproductive Health
by Megan Shields M.D. – Doctor’s Prescription for Healthy Living Article
Women suffering from premenstrual syndrome, peri-, pre-,
menopausal and postmenopausal discomforts have been left with few viable and
safe alternatives following the shocking news that traditional hormone
replacement therapy (HRT) may cause many of the diseases it was thought to
prevent such as breast cancer, heart disease, stroke and dementia. For
specific conditions, HRT benefits still might yet prove to outweigh risks.
Yet, at least one-quarter of all women who try to quit HRT cannot because of
hot flashes and other troublesome symptoms, according to a recent article
from WebMD.
Fortunately, one of the bright spots in women’s health for
2005 comes from an entirely natural source—flaxseed’s lignans.
With the demise of HRT, many women have turned to herbal
medicine where among the biggest selling herbs for women’s health are soy,
black cohosh, and red clover, according to market surveys. But none of these
supplements contains significant lignans. If women who are trying to quit
HRT do not find relief from black cohosh, red clover or soy alone, the
problem could be they are missing their lignans.
More and more health experts are now telling women that
naturally occurring lignans are truly heroic when it comes to women’s
health, but, unfortunately, in short supply in the diet. So critical are
lignans historically and biologically to women’s health, Dr. F.O. Stephens
writes (in the November 1997 Australian New Zealand Journal of Surgery), “As
humans evolved with a variety of leguminous plants as basic food, human
physiology appears to have depended upon the anti-estrogen property of
ingested lignans and isoflavonoids…”
Unfortunately, while soy, red clover and black cohosh
supplements do supply isoflavonoids, only flaxseed is a notable and
body-friendly source, and only Brevail®, a
product available now in health food stores, is university tested.
That is why all women and at all stages of life should
consider Brevail as a means of balancing and buffering powerful hormones in
their body, and to battle dangerous environmental forms of estrogen (xenoestrogens)—even
if they are already using black cohosh, red clover, or soy.
Lignans for Life
What do lignan-rich plants have to do with maintaining a
safe and healthy estrogen balance or with reducing risk of breast cancer?
Lignans are naturally structurally similar to estrogen
cells, which enables them to lock onto receptor sites and therefore block
out excess levels of estrogen that can lead to tumors. Women’s bodies have
evolved for millennia with these naturally occurring plant hormones and,
today when in such short dietary supply, they are more critical than ever.
In times of estrogen excess, they act as buffers in women’s bodies to
displace toxic forms of estrogen. Yet, if women’s own circulating estrogen
levels are low, lignans supply gentle and safe estrogen-like benefits
(because of their remarkably close resemblance to real estrogen and ability
to mimic its beneficial effects). Yet, unlike dangerous estrogen, these
phytoestrogen lignans have only a short half-life in the body and they do
not accumulate in fatty tissues like toxic estrogenic chemicals. These
lignans clearly support healthy cells and, as a medical doctor, I think this
is very important.
No wonder so many studies not only show women with healthy
lignan concentrations in their blood enjoy superb reproductive and breast
health, but also very low risks of the kinds of maladies typically found in
women who use HRT.
Unfortunately, daily phytoestrogen intake of
postmenopausal women participating in the Framingham study was estimated to
be less than 1 mg/day with 80 percent from lignans and 20 percent from
isoflavones.
Studies show American women have a very low intake of
phytoestrogens compared to women consuming traditional diets who are largely
free from the same high rates of troubling health conditions like heart
disease, osteoporosis, and perimenopausal and menopausal symptoms. In fact,
several recent reports from several medical journals confirm earlier studies
that low levels of lignans are risky to women’s health.
“Low levels of lignans, namely enterolactone, have been
reported to be associated with an increased risk of breast cancer in the
general female population,” states a study in the January 2004 issue of the
European Journal of Cancer. The study analyzed the lignan levels of 383
women who had palpable cysts over the course of 6.5 years, and found that
the levels of lignans were significantly lower in women who subsequently
developed breast cancer.
Another study of 278 women in Germany published in the
International Journal of Cancer found that the lignans enterodiol,
enterolactone, and matairesinol would be beneficial to lowering breast
cancer risk.
Finally, a study of about 1,100 women in western New York documented in the
same journal in September 2004 saw that the women who had the most lignans
in their diet have reduced breast cancer risk.
Lignans for Quality of Life
Besides contributing to breast health directly, lignans
may address the following symptoms associated with menstrual and menopausal
discomforts:
- Diminish hot flashes
- Reduce cramping and bloating
- Improve mood
- Decrease breast pain (mastalgia)
- Address insomnia
- Harmonize hormones
- Reduce fatigue
- Reduce migraines
Additionally:
- Preserve healthy breast tissue
- Support heart health
- Improve complexion and skin tone
- Strengthen hair and nails
If You Have Had Trouble Quitting HRT
After learning of the recently discovered risks associated
with hormone replacement therapy, most women have tried to stop using it.
However, one-quarter of them say they are unable to
discontinue it because of hot flashes and other troublesome problems,
according to WedMD.
If you’ve been using soy, black cohosh or red clover and
still can’t quit, you might not be receiving adequate lignans.
Brevail’s lignans have
demonstrated the ability to address symptoms of menstrual and menopausal
symptoms, as well as support breast and heart health. They are part of a
complete health program for men and women but are in extremely short supply
in the American diet.
I am also impressed by the medical support Brevail has
among my own women doctors.
- According to Christine Horner, M.D., a breast cancer
reconstructive surgeon, mounting research is revealing that lignans serve
as gentle yet powerful breast cancer preventatives with the value-added
benefit of addressing symptoms of PMS and menopause.
- Mary K. Barnhart, M.D., a breast surgeon at Rose City
Breast Cancer, in Portland, Oregon, states, “For women who are committed
to a total program of good breast health and breast cancer risk reduction,
Brevail offers an excellent way to address those needs for many women. Its
added ability to contribute to natural hormonal balance makes Brevail a
truly timely and valuable supplement to today’s women in all states of
life.”
Brevail Buzz
When supplemented by Brevail,
women find true relief for the first time in years, according to the
company’s website.
Barbara M., of Bellingham, Washington, states: “I am not
having any of the severe PMS symptoms or migraines that I was having for
months! I feel like my hormones are in balance once again.”
Says Carla H., 39, a flight attendant, “Brevail has
reduced my moodiness surrounding my monthly cycle.”
Says Teresa H., 33, of Sandy Point, Washington, “I have
had much less symptoms related to PMS and the time between periods is longer
now.”
Did You Know? Brevail Facts
- Thirty women participated in human oral dosing clinical
studies with Brevail. Lignan levels were
raised and maintained in urine and blood comparable to women with an
extraordinary history of breast and hormonal health.
- The Cancer Recovery Foundation of America is now
including Brevail samples and educational information in survival kits
that are mailed to cancer survivors and those interested in cancer
prevention.
- The supplement that the Linus Pauling Institute Center
for Micronutrient Information at Oregon State University mentions in its
definitive work on lignans is Brevail, which was the only lignan
supplement that is university researched and developed to increase lignan
concentrations in the body to match levels found in women who collectively
demonstrate an extraordinary history of breast health.
- According to the Pauling Institute, “Dietary
supplements containing lignans derived from flaxseed are available in the
U.S. without a prescription. One such supplement provides 50 mg of
secoisolariciresinol diglycoside per capsule.” That supplement is Brevail.
Resources
Women experiencing symptoms associated with PMS and
menopause—as well as women concerned with breast health or who are trying to
quit HRT—should consider Brevail as a safe, natural and effective approach
to address these concerns.
Brevail is
distributed by Christine’s Cleanse Corner, Inc
Click here for Brevail product or ordering
information. Or visit us on the web at
www.TransformYourHealth.com
or call us toll-free at 877-673-0224.
References
Stephens, F.O. “Breast cancer: aetiological factors and
associations (a possible protective role of phytoestrogens).” Aust N Z J
Surg, 1997 Nov;67(11):755-60.
Chen, J. & Thompson, L.U. “Lignans and tamoxifen, alone or in combination,
reduce human breast cancer cell adhesion, invasion and migration in vitro.”
Breast Cancer Res Treat, 2003 Jul;80(2):163-70.
de Kleijn, M.J., et al. “Intake of dietary phytoestrogens is low in
postmenopausal women in the United States: the Framingham study(1-4).” J
Nutr, 2001;131(6):1826-1832.
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