What protects you successfully against colon cancer

When people are moving a lot, it reduces their risk of developing colon cancer

Colon cancer is widespread throughout the world. Unfortunately, Germany is no exception in this case. Important for a successful treatment of colon cancer is an early diagnosis, but unfortunately the disease is usually recognized very late. Thus, the prevention of colon cancer is extremely important. Researchers now found that there is a relatively simple way to protect against the risk of colorectal cancer. Lots of exercise leads to a reduced colorectal cancer risk.

The researchers from the German Institute for Human Nutrition (DifE) found in their study that a lot of exercise can protect people from colon cancer. The physicians published the results of their study in the journal "International Journal of Epidemiology".

Regular exercise is healthy for the human body. Physicians have now found in a large study that exercise can even reduce the risk of colon cancer. (Image: Halfpoint / fotolia.com)

On which factors does the movement particularly affect??

When people move a lot, this leads to a reduced risk of developing colon cancer. This finding may be related to the positive effect of physical activity on the waist circumference, experts suggest. The effects of exercise on so-called metabolic health and vitamin D status also appear to be associated with a reduced likelihood of colon cancer.

Scientists analyze data from approximately 520,000 subjects

An international team of scientists is now evaluating a large long-term observational study. Analyzing the data of about 520,000 women and men, Krasimira Aleksandrova and Heiner Boeing of the German Institute for Human Nutrition have discovered that exercise can protect against the onset of cancer.

The experts evaluate data from the EPIC study

There are several studies that suggest that a lot of exercise can reduce the risk of colorectal cancer. However, it has not been really known which mechanisms underlie this observation. In the context of the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study, physicians are now looking for different biological markers that influence the observed risk relationship.

Exercise can reduce the colorectal cancer risk by about 25 percent

Scientists compared the medical data of 713 participants who contracted colorectal cancer for the first time in their lives with the data from 713 healthy women and men in the control group. Participants in the study were between the age of 25 and 70 years old at the time of the first survey. The data was collected between 1992 and 2003. After analyzing the data, the results showed that physically active people are better protected against colon cancer. Physically active people with a weekly energy consumption of more than 90 metabolic equivalents have a 25% reduced risk of colorectal cancer compared to less active individuals.

Three biological markers have a significant effect on the risk of colon cancer

In addition, the results of the study show that three biological markers can significantly affect the risk of colon cancer. These include vitamin D levels, the blood level of the soluble leptin receptor and the waist circumference. These three markers affect the risk relationship between physical activity and colorectal cancer by 45 percent.

A reduction in the belly fat can protect against colon cancer

But why do these three markers affect the risk of colorectal cancer so much? The waist circumference, for example, is an important indication of the so-called body fat distribution. A large waist size indicates a large amount of belly fat. Thus, the positive effect of physical activity is likely to be explained by the fact that it leads to a reduction of the abdominal fat, the scientists speculate. This reduction is probably due to an improved body metabolism. This is also supported by the influence of the soluble leptin receptor observed in the study on the risk relationship, because it is considered an indicator of the metabolic status.

Outdoor exercise seems to be particularly effective

Apparently, the effect of the vitamin D level on outdoor exercise especially contributes to a reduced risk of colorectal cancer. An adequate supply of vitamin D indicates that at least the face, arms and hands are exposed to sunlight on a regular basis, as the body then produces the vitamin with the help of sunlight through the skin. Of course, the diet also has an effect on our vitamin D value.

Physical activity keeps the metabolism healthy and protects against illnesses

"Our study shows once again how important it is to be physically active in order to keep the metabolism healthy and thus prevent diseases such as colorectal cancer," said the author Aleksandrova in a press release of the German Institute for Nutrition Research. "Implementing this knowledge into socially actively supported prevention strategies could make a significant contribution to avoiding an early and frequent occurrence of this form of cancer and thus avoiding much personal suffering," adds Heiner Boeing, head of the Potsdam EPIC study and epidemiology department at the DifE. (As)