Obesity And A Higher BMI May Be Linked To 11 Forms Of Cancer

Eating poorly and neglecting activity has always been known to cause certain health problems as well as increase your susceptibility to them. In a recent literature review published in the BMJ (British Medical Journal), the link between this neglect leading to obesity and cancer is actually stronger than professionals once thought.

The journal covers a group of over 200 cases that focused on the links between cancer indices and mortality. From these, it showed that an increased BMI had an extremely strong link to the development of esophageal, pancreatic, colorectal, and other forms of cancer. In fact, over half of all cancer in these 200 meta-analyses were linked with a higher BMI. The researchers went a step further and discovered that there may also be a relationship between waist circumference and postmenopausal breast cancer. [Kyrgiou M, Kalliala I, Markozannes G, et al. Adiposity and cancer at major anatomical sites: umbrella review of the literature. BMJ.]

While this may sound super scary and reads like anyone that is even slightly overweight is at a much higher risk of cancer, this is not exactly true. The research shows a link between the two but did not dive into exactly how obese each person was or what their other medical conditions were outside of their weight. To really keep this monkey off of our backs, especially as we continue to age, making sure we correctly handle that issue is a smart move. Obesity can also lead to other things and while cancer is certainly the worst of the bunch, diabetes and a lack of any real energy and push can be just as life-threatening.

Luckily, there is a semi-challenging way to prevent this and that is with proper regular workouts to help balance things out. Regular exercise has been proven to combat obesity and improve health overall on an internal level. Especially if you push yourself to always sweat every workout which will, in turn, increase your cardio activity, begin to burn fat, and also adjust your cholesterol levels accordingly. I would never say working out 3 – 4 times a week is an easy habit to develop but that’s why there are personal trainers waiting to help us with their own techniques to make each workout exciting and engaging. Until next time, think healthy, be healthy!