Breaking news on the breast cancer front continues to show lifestyle habits and factors may help reduce a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer.

That’s encouraging news, since an estimated 211,240 women will be diagnosed with the disease this year.BMW and the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation offer the following advice to help women reduce their personal risk:•Exercise: According to a report in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, women aged 40 and younger who spend one to three hours a week exercising appear to be about 30 percent less likely to develop breast cancer than those less active. Meanwhile, women who work out for four or more hours a week, year after year, cut their risk by at least 50 percent.•Alcohol consumption: Scientists have observed that levels of circulating estrogen (a known risk factor) are higher in women who drink. In fact, women who report consuming two alcoholic drinks a day have at least a 25 percent higher risk of breast cancer than their teetotaling counterparts.•Diet: In the Mediterranean region, breast cancer rates are far lower than in the U. S. One reason may be the consumption of olive oil, which contains oleic acid, a monounsaturated fatty acid that is believed to suppress one of the most important genes involved in breast cancer. The “Mediterranean diet” also calls for lots of fruit, vegetables and grains; fish, poultry and wine in moderation; and very little red meat.

Now in its ninth year, the Ultimate Drive is a partnership between BMW of North America and the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation that has raised more than $8 million in eight years. The program consists of two fleets of 19 silver BMWs that travel across the country for day-long events in which community members are invited to drive the BMW fleet cars to raise money for breast cancer research, education, screening and treatment programs. For each mile driven, $1 is donated by BMW to the Komen Foundation.

Each year the two fleets crisscross the country with the goal of driving 1 million miles and raising $1 million. This year, the drive will include Hawaii and Puerto Rico.

To learn more about the latest breast cancer research, visit the websites at www.Komen.org and www.bmwusa.com.

This story provided by North American Precis Syndicate, Inc.