15 October 2013 Breast Health Day: From Spain to Tajikistan, from Israel to Sweden, a Day Dedicated to the Breast Health of Women Worldwide

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Sep 18, 2013, 08:00 ET

MILAN, September 18, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

Leading up to the sixth annual Breast Health Day, which will take place on 15 October 2013, EUROPA DONNA - The European Breast Cancer Coalition once again has organised an international campaign to convince women and young girls to take care of their breasts by making healthy choices in their day-to-day life.

A growing body of evidence shows the link between healthy lifestyle choices and a lower risk of developing breast cancer.^[¹^] According to these studies, excess body weight and physical inactivity deserve special attention, since they account for 25-33 percent of all breast cancer cases (see the infographic video)^[¹^]. As a result, being active, eating a well balanced diet and avoiding weight gain are three simple but crucial lifestyle choices that can positively impact the future of a woman's breast health.

"Not enough women around the world are aware of the importance of lifestyle choices for their breast health. Studies from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) have shown that a third of all breast cancer cases can be prevented in Europe. That would mean that 148,600 of the 450,332 new cases of breast cancer each year in Europe could be prevented^[²^]" said Susan Knox, Executive Director of EUROPA DONNA - The European Breast Cancer Coalition. "Through our Breast Health Day 2013 campaign 'Make Good Choices For Your Breast Health', we are hoping to make as many women as possible more aware about prevention so they can make the healthy choices that can help prevent breast cancer".

As in previous years, the 2013 campaign will use the social networks in order to reach as many women as possible and will include many awareness raising activities in ED's 46 European member countries (see list here: http://www.europadonna.org/about/member-countries/). Each ED member country will arrange lifestyle lectures, as well as fitness and exercise events at the local level for Breast Health Day on 15 October.

At the heart of the campaign will be a fun animated video which will reach out to women of all ages, including young women, in order to convince them to make healthy choices, and be careful to maintain a well-balanced diet and engage in physical exercise. The video can be seen on YouTube.

Through the Facebook, Twitter and YouTube social media, the campaign will provide advice on how to include healthy choices in your day-to-day routine. It will also stress the importance of staying slim and maintaining your BMI (Body Mass Index) between 18.5 and 24.9 as well as provide suggestions for choosing a healthy diet and limiting food that is bad for you. Women who want more detailed scientific information on this topic can consult interviews from world-famous experts. Moreover, women can become personally involved through a web application on the Breast Health Day website, where they can share their personal breast health messages that will become part of a tag cloud at the end of the campaign.

A small change in lifestyle today can make a difference in your breast health tomorrow. Join the 2013 Breast Health Day campaign and take a step towards your future breast health.

Join us on

http://www.facebook.com/EuropaDonna

http://www.twitter.com/breasthealthday

http://www.youtube.com/breasthealthday

References

IARC (2002). IARC Handbooks of Cancer Prevention, Volume 6, Weight control and physical activity. Lyon, France: International Agency for Research on Cancer.
Ferlay J, Shin HR, Bray F, Forman D, Mathers C and Parkin DM.
GLOBOCAN 2008 v1.2, Cancer Incidence and Mortality Worldwide: IARC CancerBase No. 10 [Internet]. Lyon, France: International Agency for Research on Cancer; 2010. Available from: http://globocan.iarc.fr, accessed on 16/05/2012.

SOURCE EUROPA DONNA