If a little extra weight around the middle has made you feel smaller than your best, now may be the time to take a look at trimming that upper body. A new groundbreaking study has shown that abdominal obesity may be a contributing factor behind the second most common cancer in American men (and the first for boys in Canada).
You may already be aware that “belly fat” in recent years has been linked to endocrinological disorders such as diabetes, as well as other health problems such as cardiovascular problems. Now a new Canadian study has honed another serious problem for men with abdominal obesity: prostate cancer. (RELATED: 15 Underrated Weight Loss Tips That Actually Work)
But there is a glimmer of hope – researchers say the results create an opportunity for doctors to work preventively with patients. Read on to learn more about this link between obesity and cancer. Also, do not miss the best supplements for a longer life, according to dietitians.
Published in April in the peer-reviewed journal, Cancer causes and control, the study was led by five public health and epidemiology researchers from the Canadian National Institute of Scientific Research (National Institute of Scientific Research) with support from the Canadian Cancer Society.
Knowing that obesity had previously been linked to prostate cancer, the team tried to understand whether the distribution of overweight in the body played a role in cancer development.
The researchers examined data collected from more than 1,900 adult male participants with a maximum age of 75 between 2005 and 2012. Researchers made measurements of participants’ waists and hips, and interviewed them about their height, weight and other statistics to determine their body mass index. (BMI).
RELATED: This 7-minute walking trick can add years to your life, says study
After running the data, the researchers discovered that “abdominal obesity appears to be associated with a greater risk of developing aggressive prostate cancer.” They also found that as BMI increased, the chance of developing advanced prostate cancer increased.
As they became more detailed, they added that a waist measurement of 40 inches or higher was associated with an even increased risk of aggressive advanced prostate cancer.
Interestingly, the researchers found that general obesity was not in itself a cause of prostate cancer. Instead, it is specifically belly fat that they believe may lead to the spread of prostate cancer cells.
“Abdominal obesity causes hormonal and metabolic variations that can promote the growth of hormone-dependent cancer cells,” said Éric Vallières, a doctoral student at the University of Montreal who co-authored the study. “Abdominal obesity is thought to be associated with a decrease in testosterone, as well as a condition of chronic inflammation linked to the development of aggressive tumors.”
RELATED: 40 Best Weight Loss Tips If You Are Over 40
According to Marie-Elise Parent, the study’s leading researcher, the revelations from this study create an opportunity for doctors to work preventively with patients.
“Identifying the risk factors for aggressive cancer is a major step forward in health research because it is the most difficult to treat,” said the parent. “These data create an opportunity to work preventively by monitoring men with this risk factor more closely.”
Don’t forget to check out the 50 best foods that lower your cancer risk and sign up for Eat this, not that! newsletter to get all the health and nutrition news you need.
Read more:
