HEALTHY LIVING

Herbal Ingredients Show
Valuable Breast Health Support

Phyto-Nutrients, Plant Extracts Being Researched
For Cancer Risk Reduction...

A dietary herbal supplement containing lignans

and indole-3-carbinol may reducethe risk of

breast cancer by reducing free estrogen levels,

suggest results from arandomized control trial.

A combination of HMR lignan, indole-3-carbinol, calcium
glucarate, milk thistle, Schisandra chinesis and stinging
nettle was associated with increased hydroxylation of the
female hormone estrogen, which in turn is linked to a
reduction in the risk ofhormone-sensitive breast cancer,
according to findings published in Breast Cancer.

Hormone-sensitive estrogen-receptor (ER) positive and
progesterone-receptor (PR) positive tumors are said to
be the most common type diagnosed among breast
cancer patients in the US. These tumors are stimulated
to grow by the female hormones estrogen and progesterone.

"In pre-menopausal women, consumption of a specific
mixture of indole-3-carbinol and HMR lignan increased
the mean urinary concentration of the estrogen metabolite
[2-hydroxyestrone (2-OHE)] and the mean urinary ratio of
2-OHE [toanother another estrogen metabolite 16alpha-
hydroxyestrone (16alpha-OHE1)], and this may reduce
breast cancer risk," report scientists from Nutrasource
Diagnostics and Hackensack University Medical Center.

"In postmenopausal women, consumption of a specific
mixture of indole-3-carbinol and HMR lignan increased
the mean urinary concentration of the estrogenmetabolite
2-OHE, and this may reduce breast cancer risk. However,
the evidence for this is weaker than for premenopausal
women because the 2-OHE:16alpha-OHE ratio did not
increase significantly in this group."

Study details

The researchers recruited 47 pre-menopausal (average
age 37, average BMI 27.2 kg/m2) and 49 post-menopausal
women (average age 56.5, average BMI 27.5 kg/m2) and
randomly assigned to receive either the herbal supplement
or placebo for 28 days.

Results showed an increase in urine levels of 2-OHE, as well
as in the 2:16alpha-OHE ratio for the herbal group, compared
with placebo. An increase in 2-OHE was also observed in
post-menopausal women receiving the herbal supplement,
but the 2:16alpha-OHE ratio did not increase.

"Supplementation with a mixture of indole-3-carbinol and
HMR lignan in women significantly increased estrogen C-2
hydroxylation," report the researchers. "This may constitute
a mechanism for the reduction of breast cancer risk as well
as risk for other estrogen-related cancers.

"Further studies with higher numbers of subjects are
indicated," they added.

Source: Breast Cancer

"Effects of A Breast-Health Herbal Formula Supplement
on Estrogen Metabolism in Pre- and Post-Menopausal
Women not Taking Hormonal Contraceptives or 

Supplements: A Randomized Controlled Trial"

Editor's Note: This article is not intended to provide medical advice,
diagnosis or treatment.

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