A study by the American Institute for Cancer Research and the World Cancer Research Fund examining the link between obesity and cancer concludes that excess body fat triggers many types of the disease, as does the consumption of even moderate amounts of red meat and processed meat, as well as alcohol. The cancers most convincingly linked to excess body fat – especially excess fat carried around the waist – include cancers of the colon, kidney, pancreas, uterine, adenocarcinoma of the esophagus, and postmenopausal breast cancer.
According to the research, food, nutrition and lack of exercise appear to be key factors in causing up to one third of all cancers, making controllable lifestyle factors associated with diet and weight cause cancer as often as smoking.
The most striking finding in the report is that excess body fat increases risk for numerous cancers, according to study author Phillip James who is also chairman of the British-based International Obesity Taskforce.
The exhaustive, five-year review of more than 7,000 research papers investigating the relationships between food, nutrition, lack of physical exercise and cancer incidence.
The most important factor influencing cancer incidence is body mass, that is, staying as thin as possible within the normal range for one’s body weight. Eating a diet consisting of large quantities of vegetables and fruits is also key.
The good news as this study demonstrates: Cancer is eminently a preventable disease, and we are all able to make immediate and impactful changes in our daily life to reduce our chance of developing cancer.
What’s Your BMI
Recently, the FDA acknowledged that a new study by Allergan demonstrated that obese patients having the LAP BAND procedure experienced statistically significant weight loss. Many obesity experts agree that LAP-BAND surgery – or new restrictive techniques such as gastric plication has proven to be the only way many people can achieve and maintain a significant weight loss This argument is well-demonstrated at Hospital Angles Tijuana, where Allergan’s LAP-BAND has been placed in more than 6,000 American patients.
