Obesity can promote cancer

Obesity can promote cancer: reducing one's weight also reduces the risk of cancer.

30/12/2010

According to the German Cancer Research Center in Heidelberg, about 450,000 people were diagnosed with various cancers in 2010. According to the director of the research institution, Professor Ottmar Wiestler, smoking as a risk factor causes more than 30 percent of cases of cancer. In the near future, however, overweight could replace the harmful smoking as the main trigger. Already, experts are seeing a rapid increase in esophageal cancer, colon, breast, kidney and pancreatic cancer. Among other things, these cancers are triggered by being overweight.

A connection of the overweight shows up in the opinion of the physician Dr. med. med. Dirk Raddatz of the Department of Gastroenterology and Endocrinology in the field of human medicine at the Georg-August-Universität Göttingen in almost all types of cancer. The only exception is lung cancer, where smoking continues to play an important role. Smokers weigh a few kilograms less, lean people are more likely to develop lung cancer than obese people.

Adipose tissue plays a role in the development of cancer
Researchers assume that currently three to four percent of all cancerous tumors are triggered by an existing overweight. Adipose tissue seems to play a special role in carcinogenesis. Scientists believe that the adipose tissue not only stores energy, but also produces hormones or changes hormones so that they promote cancer growth.

Overweight is a growing problem of society
According to a survey by the OECD, about 60 percent of men and 45 percent of women in Germany are overweight. A total of 16 percent of people already suffer from obesity (obesity). The health experts warn against the negative consequences for health. "Heavily obese people die about eight to ten years earlier than people of normal weight, and they are more likely to develop diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer," the OECD experts recently said. Even 20 years ago, the proportion of obesity patients was less than 10 percent. But since the 80s, the proportion of heavily overweight in the western countries is increasing massively.

According to current WHO guidelines people are considered to be overweight if the body mass index (BMI) is between 25 and 30. Obesity is when the BMI is over 30. The BMI is the weight of a person in relation to height and is calculated from the weight divided by the height squared.

The main cause of the rapid increase in obesity in the population, especially the unhealthy lifestyle in the western industrialized countries is considered. More and more people do their professional activities, especially when sitting. This inevitably leads to a reduction in general physical activity. The second most important factor is an increasing malnutrition, which is often summarized by doctors as "too much, too fat, too sweet and too salty". Inevitably, people are consuming less and less fiber, too little vitamins and too few phytochemicals. However, these substances are mainly present in vegetables, which also contain substances that protect against the development of cancer.

Lower obesity and protect against cancer
The most important recommendation is the reduction of the body circumference in case of an existing overweight. However, in most cases this goal can only be achieved by completely abandoning his old and harmful ways of life. A sensible and healthy diet should be a permanent fixture in everyday life. Such a lifestyle requires a fundamental rethink. Exactly this change of thinking is a great challenge for many, because they have to learn a healthy lifestyle from the beginning.

Nutrition experts advise eating at least five servings of vegetables and fruits a day. Because, as already mentioned, there are so-called bioactive substances in fruits and vegetables that are very likely to reduce the risk of cancer. Instead of a lot of meat and sausages, it makes more sense to fish and poultry. Cereal products - possibly whole grains, legumes and potatoes should also be an integral part of the daily diet.

In addition to nutrition, daily, active exercise is very important. An active lifestyle with a corresponding energy consumption prevents overweight and thus reduces the risk of cancer. The guideline is to be active at least one hour per day. It is meaningful, e.g. walking, hiking, cycling or jogging. Whoever observes all these points not only reduces the risk of getting cancer, but also for diabetes or a heart attack. Numerous nutritional advice centers provide help to change diet. At the beginning of a fat reduction, it may be beneficial to develop a nutritional plan that is geared to your needs. (Sb)

Also read:
Overweight as a trigger for cancer
OECD: Every sixth German is obese
Diet can prevent kidney stones

Image: Dieter Schütz