Researchers at Yale University have come to the conclusion that a clear link between being overweight and an increased risk of several types of cancer. “We know that a good third of cancers are associated with our lifestyle behaviors, such as what we eat, how much we exercise and, collectively, our weight,” Melinda Irwin, Ph.D., states the director of Cancer Prevention and Control at Yale University. “And obesity is now the leading modifiable risk factor, even ahead of tobacco use, that’s associated with cancer risk and mortality.”
Having too much body fat causes inflammation, and inflammation is known to increase the development of cancer cells. The American Cancer Society that certain cancers are clearly linked to being overweight. Cancers that are directly linked to excess weight include: breast (in women past menopause), uterine, colon and rectum, esophagus, kidney and pancreas. Meanwhile, cancers of the cervix, liver, gallbladder and ovaries, along with aggressive prostate cancer, are all more likely to develop in the overweight.
The good news: There’s no time like the present to start eating healthy and exercising.