1. Spend at least an hour a week in the sauna (or use exercise to sweat) to eliminate environmental chemicals and toxic metals stored in your fat cells.
2. Exercise at least 40 minutes each day or 4 hours a week
3. Sleep in a dark room, with no light from the street coming into your bedroom. 
4. Switch to using non-toxic cleaning products, like baking soda and vinegar. 
5. Avoid cosmetics, nail polish, toothpaste, shampoo etc. containing parabens (methyl, propyl, butyl, and ethyl paraben) or phthalates. 
6. Drink water and keep any leftover food stored in the fridge in glass, ceramic or stainless steel rather than plastic. 
7. Adopt a primarily vegetarian diet. Minimize or avoid meat, fish, eggs or dairy, but use instead legumes (lentils, chick peas, split peas, mung beans etc.), organic tofu, nuts and seeds.
8. Add 2 tbsp. of freshly ground flaxseeds daily to your cereal, juice, fruit smoothie, salad or bean dishes. 
9. Eat 2 tsp. of turmeric daily added to your food or take 1000 mg of curcumin in capsule form daily.
10. Spend 15 minutes outside exposing your arms and legs to sunlight every day or take 2000-5000 IU of vitamin D3 daily. Monitor vitamin D levels in blood - it should be above 66 ng/ml (US) or 150 nmol/L (Canada).  see research
11. Reduce or limit alcohol to no more than 2 alcoholic beverages per week.

by Julie Groulx

I must admit, getting rid of plastic in my home hasn't been easy, but it's something my housemates and I are diligent about each month. Plastic purging is a tradition that we perform to free our house and mind of clutter. We think about it more as an aspiration that can be deepened over time rather than something that can be done all at once. Although our efforts are more of a journey than a destination, we've made some great strides in reducing plastic. Once I started doing this, I really became aware of how much plastic is overused! I notice plastic in homes, on the subway, in restaurants and especially when I'm shopping for clothes.

Plastic is all around us. It lines the insides of cans, can be found inside many of our water bottles, food storage containers and much of the packaging for our food and drinks.  For many of us, it is throughout our home; it can be in our window frames, furniture, wallpaper, flooring, clothing, eyeglasses, teeth, toothbrushes, computers, phones, dishes, utensils, toys, etc.  The list goes on. 

Why is plastic a problem? Evidence shows that in addition to causing many environmental issues, plastic can harm our health by disrupting our hormones, impairing brain function, stimulating the growth of cancer cells and causing resistance to chemotherapy.

Here are 14 tips to get you started.

1. Keep your jars. Replace plastic food containers with jars and stainless steel or glass containers. We use jars of various sizes to store our grains, spices, lunches, leftovers, etc. We also use plastic-free stainless steel storage containers for storing lunches and leftovers in the fridge. I get them from the Big Carrot Grocery store in Toronto. A wonderful way to purchase jars and other glass containers on a budget is from your local thrift or antique shop. If your kids are bringing the stainless steel containers to school and use microwaves to warm up their food, it's handy to pack a bowl or plate to transfer their food into. See more ...

2. Let us know if you would like to be a group leader, who would be         responsible for co-ordinating the Skype meeting and keeping the group   accountable and connected.

3. We'll put together the groups, and then the group leader will connect with everyone in the group to arrange a monthly meeting time.

4. Review the chapter in your Healthy Breast Foundations manual before the call and/or review the online module by Sat Dharam Kaur on that chapter theme. 

5. Share your challenges and successes on integrating the module into   your life and support each other in your healing journey.

6. Review the home practice program and answer the questions at the   end of the chapter each month and be prepared to share during the call. 

7. Use the Healthy Breast Program facebook group to communicate and share each week.

The Mammalive Foundation for Women's Health and Education was founded in 2012 by Sat Dharam Kaur and Julie Groulx to support a vision of women empowering women through breast health education. 

The causes of cancer are multi-factorial and there are preventative strategies that are available today. 

Empowering women to take a proactive approach in preventing or reversing the disease is essential. This can be achieved by forming a global network of healthcare practitioners, yoga teachers and advocates who are passionate about women's health. We can spread our message of hope, wellness and accountability towards global change for one another, our daughters and Mother Earth. We invite you to work with us. You may forward this ezine to friends, students and patients by clicking below.