Suzanne Somers isn't famous because she goes along with conventional wisdom on important health topics. She doesn't have her very own CafeMom Studios show on YouTube for that reason either. The former Three's Company star commands attention by being forward-thinking ... and yes, sometimes, controversial. Personally, I really respect that about her. Though I realize others aren't as keen on it.
Admittedly, I could see how Suzanne's latest soundbyte will likely raise more than a few eyebrows. She was on The Rosie Show last week discussing mammograms. As it turns out, she falls into the camp that believes they're not all they're cracked up to be.
Suzanne says she feels like the mammo process itself is unnatural -- you know, all that boobie squashing -- and she and Rosie joked that if men had to annually have their junk examined in something that resembled a panini press, you can bet they would have come up with an alternative method by now! True that, huh? And beyond that, Suzanne says she isn't keen on the radiation you get when you undergo a mammo. Or the fact that, she says, if you have an existing tumor, the screening can "break it open," and it metastasizes. Eeek!
Definitely controversial, right? I actually asked a friend of mine who is an ultrasound tech about this, and she said that you get more radiation from flying on a plane than you would from your annual mammogram. Now, I'm not sure of the exact research, but I can respect my friend's argument, as well as Suzanne's, because the bottom-line should be that women should have options for breast cancer screening. It's a little ridiculous that we should be limited to just mammography, right?
As Suzanne notes, she prefers breast thermography, ultrasound, a cancer cell test done by one particular lab, etc. These may not be the most popular options, but they are still screenings women can and should discuss with their docs as possible alternatives. Because even though it's been drilled into our brains to gravitate to mammograms alone, there's a good chance they're not necessarily our best or only option.
Here's the clip of Suzanne talking to Rosie ...
What do you think about Suzanne's take on breast screening? Have you explored options outside of mammography?
Image via Oprah.com
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Comments 8
when the time comes I will be doing breast thermography
She interviews the best and the brightest doctors and scientists and reports what they say. You people who denigrate and demean Suzanne as an "actress" are looking to elevate themselves and their uninformed opinions. Check out Suzanne Somers Facebook and read what Dr. Russell Blaylock, renowned neurosurgeon and neuroscientist has to say about mammograms; it'll blow your mind. And if you have an open mind, you might want to return to this site and agree with Suzanne.....or not.
I agree with Alan Platt here. She NEVER claims to be a doctor. And you who say she is full of wrong or misinformation are not doctors either. It is true that mammograms have saved lives but it is also been proven that they are harmful as well. If there is a better way to detect breast cancer I'm all for it. Why would you not be and if Suzanne Somers id the one who sheds light on our choices then I am all for it!