Orange and Black were there first

Women’s issues

As October passes the torch to November and we prepare to flip the page on our calendars, stores try to push that last batch of pink-colored anything.  From M&M’s to fruit to cupcakes, pink is still everywhere this month, often outdoing the traditional black and orange of Halloween.

But why?  At first I thought my local grocery store had accidentally ordered products with Easter decoration.  As it turns out, October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  This apparently didn’t require a banner or pamphlets or even information on breast cancer, merely a pink bow everywhere and selling pink shirts and bags.  Most of these don’t give any profits to fighting breast cancer and merely use the pink to show awareness they have, as well as promote it.

About 1 in 8 women will get invasive breast cancer while the chance for men is 1 in a thousand.  Breast cancer rates have been dropping since 2000, though it remains the second highest rate of cancer in the US, just after smoking.  In 2013, there were 2.8 million women with a history of breast cancer, including survivors.  Although a woman’s chance of breast cancer is doubled if a close relative has had it, 85% of breast cancers occur in women who have no family history of it.

You don’t find this on the back of a pink snickers, or box of Jell-O, though do you?  No, no one wants to talk about breast cancer during awareness week, merely sell anything that can be turned pink.  Even the good news of how to prevent beast cancer or fewer instances for nearly two decades can be said.

Instead of pushing new wrappers for everything, let’s change our pink-saturated month to something that might actually save lives.  Heck, we can even keep our fall festival celebration and still leave the scares to the children. Let’s get down and dirty and leave the girly pink ribbons to the kids dressed as princesses and push for joining the fight with homesteading.

Homesteading is a popular movement and can be done in any home and any neighborhood.  You can raise a few tomatoes in a boot or you can fill your yard with livestock and veggies.  October is a perfect time for fall planting of delicious plants known for fighting and preventing cancer such as broccoli, cauliflower, onions, garlic, carrots, spinach, beans, lettuce, asparagus, tomatoes, and peppers.  There is also an increase in urban chicken and goat owners seeking healthier and better tasting eggs, lean meats, and low-fat dairy products that also fight cancer.

This October, save a life instead of throwing away a pink container and give a gift of saving lives.  Food shelters take vegetables and there are man organizations beyond community gardens that help families begin a sustainable resource for nutrition.  Give the gift of longevity and security; you’ll be rewarded with thanks, friendship, maybe even petting those adorable and delicious animals, all on top of helping safe the life of a friend.