Learn about good nutrition and start eating for good health.

Everything your body does—from healing a wound to fighting cancer cells—is affected by what you eat. Bad nutrition seriously hampers your body's ability to function in top form. Good nutrition increases general wellness.

Two leaders in the field—Dr. Keith Block (University of Illinois and the Block Medical Center, Evanston, Illinois), and Dr. Mitch Gaynor (Strang-Cornell Cancer Prevention Center, New York City)—focus on nutrition as a means of reducing cancer risk, extending survival, and increasing quality of life. Their work emphasizes vegetarian diets and fat restriction, coupled with stress reduction and other complementary medicine therapies. They believe these factors combine to strengthen the immune system. A strong immune system can fight disease better, and it seems logical that this would lower your risk for all disease, including breast cancer.

The American Cancer Society has guidelines on nutrition and exercise for cancer risk reduction that may be helpful for you.

Eat your fruits and vegetables ! Researchers disagree on whether certain vegetables or fruits reduce risk for breast cancer. One report that combined many dietary studies showed no clear decrease in risk of breast cancer from diets high in vegetables and fruits. But a diet full of produce can help you lose weight or maintain a good weight. So through this indirect result, this type of diet may also be able to help lower breast cancer risk.

Some people chose to eat organic foods when possible to minimize exposure to pesticides, extra hormones, antibiotics and genetically modified organisms. But keep in mind that the U.S. Department of Agriculture makes no claims that organically produced food is safer or more nutritious than conventionally produced food. More research is needed to find out whether organic foods are more nutritious or healthier compared to foods produced by traditional farming methods.

Here are some easy ways to make sure you get at least five servings of vegetables and fruit in a day (nine is better):

• Add chopped squash and carrots to jarred or fresh spaghetti sauce (serve on pasta for a great dinner).
• Eat tomatoes, tomatoes, tomatoes—raw in salad, sandwiches, salsa, juice, alone (like a piece of fruit), cooked in sauces.
• Eat whole fruit rather than drink juice, to reduce calories, add fiber, and increase feelings of fullness.
• Snack on baby carrots and celery (keep a cooler of them in the car).
• Throw handfuls of spinach into stews and soups
  Add shredded lettuce to potato salad.
• Add broccoli, tomatoes, or zucchini to scrambled eggs or omelets.
• Freeze grapes and berries in single-serving containers for a cool treat during summer months.

Relax. Anything you can do to reduce your stress and to enhance your comfort, joy, and satisfaction will have a major effect on your quality of life. So-called “mindful measures” (such as meditation, yoga, visualization exercises, and prayer) may be valuable additions to your daily or weekly routine. Intriguing new studies suggest that these fundamental but non-traditional interventions may strengthen the immune system. And if your immune system is strong, it's better able to fight disease. For example, improved immune cell function has been documented after people with melanoma, a malignant skin cancer, attended regular support group meetings. Another study found that women in breast cancer support groups had a better quality of life and more immune cells in the blood than those who don't join such groups. The power of support goes a long way to reduce stress and make people feel connected—not alone—in their fight against cancer.