Obesity, Weight, and Cancer Risk
More than two-thirds of American adults are overweight and obese. This means that they have too much body fat compared to lean body tissue, such as muscle. Many factors cause people to become overweight or obese, including genetic, hormonal, environmental, emotional, and cultural factors. People who are overweight or obese have a higher risk of many serious health conditions, including type-2 diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease. Being overweight or obese is also associated with an increased risk of cancer.
Understanding weight gain and cancer risk
Several studies have explored why being overweight or obese may increase cancer risk and growth. The possible reasons that obesity is linked with cancer include:
- Increased levels of insulin and insulin growth factor-1 (IGF-1), which may help some cancers develop
- Chronic, low-level inflammation, which is more common in people who are obese and is linked with an increased cancer risk
- Higher amounts of estrogen produced by fat tissue, which can drive the development of some cancers, such as breast and endometrial cancers
- Fat cells may also effect processes that regulate cancer cell growth.
How your weight changes throughout your life may also affect your risk for cancer. Studies have shown that the following factors can affect your cancer risk: high birth weight, gaining weight as an adult as well as losing and gaining weight repeatedly.
Research suggests that maintaining a healthy weight is associated with a lower risk of cancer and of cancer recurrence in cancer survivors.
Being overweight or obese has been linked to some cancers:
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Measuring weight gain
Obesity is often measured with body mass index (BMI): the ratio of a person’s weight and height and waist measurements. A normal BMI is between 18.5 and 24.9. A BMI between 25 and 29.5 is considered overweight, while a BMI of 30 or higher is obese. In addition, people with larger waist measurements have a higher risk of various diseases, such as heart disease. A normal waist measurement is under 40 inches for men and under 35 inches for women.
Weight management tips
To control weight gain, be aware of what you eat and how much you exercise. You should also make healthy choices about what you eat and drink. This can be challenging because eating a high-calorie diet is typical in the United States today. The reasons for this include a plentiful, relatively low-cost food supply and large portions. Here are some tips to help…
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This article was originally posted on cancer.net.