Breast Cancer Risk Factors

Obesity: Being overweight increases the risk, especially after reaching menopause if that weight gain took place during adulthood.
Exercise: Exercise can lower breast cancer risk by about 60% in adults. More research is being done to confirm these findings.
Breastfeeding: Studies have shown that breastfeeding lowers breast cancer risk, especially is breastfeeding lasts 1½ to 2 years. One study found that having several children and breastfeeding could reduce the risk of breast cancer by half. This may be because breastfeeding lowers a woman’s total number of menstrual periods.
Alcohol: Alcohol is clearly linked with an increased risk of breast cancer. Those who have 2 to 5 drinks daily have about 1½ times the risk of women who drink no alcohol.
HRT: It has become clear that long term use (several years) of combined HRT (estrogens together with progesterone) for the relief of menopause symptoms may slightly increase the risk of breast cancer as well as the risk of heart disease, blood clots, and strokes. The breast cancers are also found at a more advanced stage. As well, HRT seems to reduce the effectiveness of mammograms.
Birth control pills: studies have found that women now using birth control pills have a slightly increases risk of getting breast cancer.
Not having children before the age of 30 increases a woman’s risk by 40%.