Hello Green Beauty

What You Need to Know About Ovarian Cancer

For those of you who doesn’t know, September has been proclaimed by former US President Obama as National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month. If breast cancer awareness is represented by a pink ribbon, teal ribbon is the international representation for ovarian cancer awareness. With that in mind, I decided to write this post, in collaboration with ConsumerSafety.org, to educate people about ovarian cancer.

What is Ovarian Cancer

Ovarian cancer is a disease wherein malignant cancer cells develop on the surface of the ovary or from tissues inside the ovary. This cancer can affect either one or both ovaries. There are different types of ovarian cancer but the most common one is epithelial ovarian cancer wherein tumors developed on the surface of the ovary. If you are diagnosed with ovarian cancer, then there is a 90% chance that it is an epithelial ovarian cancer.

Key Statistics About Ovarian Cancer

Ovarian cancer ranks 5th in cancer deaths among women
Ovarian cancer is the #1 cause of gynecologic cancer deaths
Women have a 1 in 75 chance of developing ovarian cancer in their lifetime
Half the women who develop ovarian cancer are over the age of 60
Around 22,000 women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer every year
14,000 women die each year from ovarian cancer
Only 15% of ovarian cancers are diagnosed at stage 1
Every 23 minutes, a woman is diagnosed with ovarian cancer in the United States

Symptoms

Ovarian cancer is hard to detect early because most of its symptoms are also common symptoms of other illnesses or there could be no symptoms at all.

Some of its common symptoms are:

Bloating in the abdomen
Pelvic or abdominal pain
Trouble eating (loss of appetite) or feeling full quickly
Feeling the need to urinate urgently or often
Abnormal menstruations
Fatigue
Upset stomach
Unexplained frequent back pain
Vaginal bleeding or unusual vaginal discharge
Pain during sex

Know Your Risk Factors

Certain women have higher chance of having ovarian cancer because they satisfy some risk factors associated to it. Risk factor pertains to something that can increase your chance of getting a disease. Take note though that even if you have the following risk factors associated to ovarian cancer, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you will get the disease.

Age

The older the woman gets, the higher her chance of getting ovarian cancer. This is the reason why most women develop ovarian cancer after menopause.

Genetic Mutations

Ever wonder why even people who are living a healthy lifestyle are still getting cancer? It’s because of genetic mutation – it could be in the genes. Genes like BRCA1 and BRCA2 are responsible for controlling cell growth in our body. Mutations in those genes have been linked to an increased risk of ovarian cancer.

Family History

If you have a family history (in multiple generations) of ovarian cancer or breast cancer, then there is a chance that you will also inherit the cancer-causing genes.

Obesity

Some studies have shown that obese women (especially those with a body mass index of at least 30) have a slightly higher risk of getting ovarian cancer.

How is Ovarian Cancer Diagnosed

We always hear that prevention is better than a cure. It means the sooner the ovarian cancer is detected, the better the chance of treatment and recovery. If you suspect yourself to have ovarian cancer, then you may want to undergo a transvaginal ultrasound so the doctor can see if there are some abnormal findings in your ovaries. If an abnormal growth is found, your doctor may also advise you to take a blood test to measure your CA 125 level. An increased level of CA (Cancer Antigen) 125 substance in your blood may indicate the presence of cancerous tumors.

How is Ovarian Cancer Treated

Depending on the severity of the ovarian cancer, it’s either only the affected ovary will be removed or the uterus, fallopian tubes and ovaries will be removed altogether. Chemotherapy may be recommended before or after the surgery or both.

How to Reduce Your Risk

Oral Contraceptives

Use of birth control pills for more than 5 years reduces the risk of ovarian cancer by 50%. The risk is actually decreased by 10 to 12 percent after just one year of use. In other words, the longer the oral contraceptives are used, the lower the risk of getting ovarian cancer.

Hysterectomy

Hysterectomy pertains to the removal of the uterus. This surgery can reduce the risk of ovarian cancer by about one-third. Of course, the only downside to this is that you won’t be able to get pregnant after this operation.

Pregnancy and Breastfeeding

Pregnancy before the age of 26 and breastfeeding can both lower the risk of ovarian cancer.

Healthy Diet

Eat foods rich in vitamin A, D & E, as well as omega-3 fatty acids (e.g. salmon, tuna, etc.). Limit the consumption of processed meat (e.g. bacon). Eating a healthy, balanced diet will not only lower the risk of ovarian cancer, but will also prevent other diseases.

Talc Powder

Some studies have shown that using talc powder on the genital area for a prolonged period of time can increase the risk of ovarian cancer. The link between talc and ovarian cancer originated from the fact that pre-1970, talc powders were sometimes contaminated with asbestos which is a known carcinogen. Recently, there have been a lot of ovarian cancer patients who have filed lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson. These patients believe that their ovarian cancer was caused by using Johnson’s Baby Powder on their genital area for several years.

Sources:

https://www.consumersafety.org/health/ovarian-cancer/

https://medlineplus.gov/ovariancancer.html

https://www.cancer.org/cancer/ovarian-cancer/causes-risks-prevention/risk-factors.html

https://www.acog.org/Patients/FAQs/Ovarian-Cancer

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, by Hello Green Beauty

In Beauty, DIY

DIY Homemade Tinted Lip Balm

My first ever DIY project was a peppermint lip balm because it’s the easiest one to do. This time I wanted to be more adventurous with my DIY so I decided to do a tinted version of my peppermint lip balm. But before we proceed with the recipe, let me first give you a short introduction about the most commonly used colorants in cosmetic lip products.

Carmine

Carmine is a colorant often used in lip products to give them a bright red color. This pigment though is derived from the cochineal beetles. Carminic acid is extracted from the body of these insects in order to produce a lovely red dye. If you want to create a vegan lip product, then carmine is definitely out of the ingredient list.

FD&C Dyes

FD&C (Food, Drugs and Cosmetics) dyes are synthetic colorants that are derived from petroleum. Not all FD&C colors are actually toxic. This article from U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) enumerates FD&C dyes that are approved for use in cosmetics as well as those that are already banned. FD&C dyes are the most commonly used cosmetic colorants because they are less expensive and they produce a wide variety of colors.

Iron Oxide

Iron oxides are mineral-based pigments. Before using in cosmetics, these mineral deposits are processed in laboratory in order to remove impurities that normally occur on naturally-derived iron oxides. Since they are chemically processed, they are considered synthetic. However, not all synthetic ingredients are not good. In fact, the Natural Products Association (NPA) includes iron oxides in their list of accepted raw materials for natural personal care products.

Mica

Mica is a naturally occurring group of silicate minerals. Aside from iron oxide, mica is another popular pigment used in mineral makeups. It is also included in Natural Products Association (NPA)’s list of approved ingredients for natural products.

For the following tinted lip balm recipe, I chose to use red iron oxide as pigment. Iron oxide will give a matte finish to the lip balm. If you want a lip balm with a hint of shimmer, then you can substitute iron oxide with mica. Take note though that not all mica colors are safe for use on lips. Micas that are tinted with ultramarine, chromium oxide green and hydrated chromium oxide cannot be used on lips. It is best to verify with your supplier if the mica color you are planning to use on your DIY lip balms are safe for lips.

Now, let’s get into the recipe, shall we?

Ingredients

(Makes one lip balm on 15g tin can)

3 tsp. extra virgin coconut oil

1 tsp. beeswax pellets

5 drops of peppermint essential oil

1 capsule of Vitamin E

1/8 tsp. red iron oxide

Instructions

Combine the coconut oil and beeswax pellets in a double boiler. Over low heat, stir until the mixture is completely melted. If you don’t have a double boiler, then you can just improvise by placing a heat-resistant container over a small pot of simmering water.
Remove from heat then add the Vitamin E (puncture the capsule and squeeze out the oil) and peppermint essential oil. Mix well to evenly distribute the oils.
Add the red iron oxide and mix well until the pigment is fully incorporated into the mixture. If the mixture started to harden before the pigment is fully mixed, just place the container back into the double boiler or pot of simmering water.
Quickly transfer the mixture to lip balm containers and wait for it to solidify at room temperature before covering the containers.

Tip #1: Since iron oxide is in powder form, it is only normal that it will not really completely melt in our oil mixture. So as you pour the lip balm mixture into containers, make sure that you don’t pour the last few drops that have undissolved iron oxide. This method will prevent your lip balm from feeling gritty.

Tip #2: The only thing I don’t like when working with pigment is it’s so hard to remove the color residue from the container. For easier clean up, use kitchen paper towel to wipe off the pigmented wax from the container while the wax is still soft, then pour hot water into the container to remove remaining wax residue.

Where to buy the materials

The beeswax pellets, peppermint essential oil and 15g aluminum tin cans can be bought from ISLAS Aromatics.
The extra virgin coconut oil can be bought in any supermarket. I bought mine from Landmark Makati.
Vitamin E capsule can be bought from any drugstore. I bought mine from Watsons pharmacy.
The red iron oxide can be bought from Craftology Essentials.

The above recipe will produce a lip balm with a subtle color of red. If you want a more intense color, then just increase the amount of red iron oxide a little at a time. You can also mix red iron oxide with an oil-soluble titanium dioxide or zinc oxide to create different shades of pink.

I encourage you to try making your own tinted lip balm. It’s so much fun and addicting especially when it comes to customizing your own lip balm colors J

P.S. To always get the latest blog updates, don’t forget to follow me on Facebook.