Bra's cause Breast Cancer ?

In yesterday's post saying that I like OnExercise Magazine, I mentioned that one of the magazine articles was on Bra's causing Breast Cancer. I also mentioned that my wife, a breast cancer survivor, said that she was not going to stop wearing a bra and overall she was not impressed by the article.

If you put any set of words into a Google search, thousands of hits will result: some interesting and valid; some off the wall; and quite a few totally irrelevant. I tried searching on "bra cancer" and no surprise lots of information came to the surface - not all of it believable. One of my motivations for this is a desire not to add to urban legends. Once a story gets started on the internet and can race off with a life of its own.

It all goes back to a book called Dressed to Kill by Sydney Ross Singer and Soma Grismaijer published in 1995. You can buy it on Amazon for about $15. By the way, there are lots of books and videos with Dressed to Kill as a title so pick up the right one.

Other sites say - don't worry - look at this one as an example.

The BBC carried a report in 2000 saying that Professor Robert Mansell (University of Wales, Cardiff) who has been researching this area said that he thought women had nothing to worry about.

However there are many who firmly believe the link.

The frequently used argument that decades ago no one believed there was a link between smoking and lung cancer, so if today (or at least 1995) no one believes there's a link from bra's to breast cancer then just wait for more evidence. After 12 years no more evidence. Your decision.

OnFitness Magazine

OnFitness is a magazine that I sometimes see lying around in the gym - usually old, well thumbed copies. Earlier this year I decided to stop being a cargo cultist i.e. hoping that good things would just magically land right in front of me and instead buy my own copy of OnFitness.

It turns out that the magazine is trying to survive by gaining readers through word of mouth rather than advertising. I've never seen it on a magazine rack at a bookstore. This is the tough way to build magazine circulation.

The magazine approach is "The natural approach to health & fitness."

I can't agree with everything in the magazine but it's always interesting, sometimes provocative and once in a while just plain aggravating. For instance the January/February 2008 edition arrived today in my mailbox and included an article about bra's causing breast cancer. My wife who has survived breast cancer said that she was not going to stop wearing a bra and added in the thought "What about corsets? Did they cause intestinal cancers ?"

This Jan/Feb 2008 issue has multiple articles around the theme of exercise intensity. All worth reading and absorbing.

If you happen to stumble upon a copy of the Jan/Feb 2008 magazine, start off by turning to page 68 to find the article " Weight Training for Seniors." I know that this is one of my favorite topics - us old people need to hang on to muscle for as long as possible - weight training is the best way to do this.

I'm not in any way paid or encouraged by OnFitness to write about them but they are a magazine I presently read avidly.