If you’re a nutrition-savvy woman, you probably know to eat plenty of omega-3-rich coldwater fish to bolster heart health, or to make sure you’re getting ample fiber to ward off colon cancer and diabetes. But how often do you eat for breast health? The truth is that what you eat and how much you get of certain nutrients can play a huge role in lessening the risk of cancer and other breast problems, say experts. In fact, a third of the nearly 200,000 new breast cancer cases every year in the U.S. could be prevented by dietary changes, says cancer expert Leena Hilakivi-Clarke, professor of oncology at Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington, DC. In addition to getting ample servings of fruits and vegetables and whole grains in breads and cereals, Hilakivi-Clarke and other experts recommend working these breast-smart food and supplement choices into your everyday habits.

Work in walnuts

Trade in your potato chips for a handful of walnuts. Walnuts contain healthy omega-3s, as well as antioxidants and phytosterols (another type of plant fat)—all of which have been shown to slow the growth of breast tumors. Earlier this year, a study presented at the American Association for Cancer Research showed that mice eating the human equivalent of 2 ounces (that’s just 14 walnuts) a day were much less likely to develop breast cancer, even though these rodents were at very high risk for the disease. Related research shows that the same amount of walnuts in the diet can slow breast tumor growth by blocking cancer cell proliferation, which means that the breast tumors that did develop grew more slowly. Since walnuts pack a wallop of fat (even though it’s the healthy kind, it’s still fat) and concentrated calories, make sure you’re substituting walnuts for other snacks and not just eating them in addition to your normal intake, as weight gain raises the risk of breast cancer.

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