Time to watch weight as it could lead to cancer, says study
New Delhi | Sunday, Jan 24 2016 IST
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It is time to watch out for the extra kilos that get stored in the body as a recent study has come out with deleterious effects excessive fat can have on an individual.According to a study conducted in America, obesity is home to about more than 1,00,000 types of cancers and the chances of developing carcinogens in body is directly proportional to the amount of fat accumulated.''People should maintain a normal body weight and control obesity to become less vulnerable to cancer,'' researchers from American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) opined.As per AICR data, excess body fat is linked to 49 per cent of endometrial cancers , 35 per cent of esophageal cancers 28 per cent of pancreatic cancers, 24 per cent of kidney cancers, 21 per cent of gallbladder cancers, 17 per cent of breast cancers and 9 per cent of colorectal cancers.Experts say that an obese individual becomes prone to cancer as fat accumulation increases the amount of hormones like estrogen circulating in the body and disrupting how the body processes insulin, which is linked to higher risk of cancer. It also shoots up low-grade inflammation in the body, which is widely being found to play a role in cancer, they say.Doctors in India have also not ruled out the persistent link between obesity and triggering of cancer cells in the body.Dr Rakesh Agarwal of Balaji Healthcare here said,''Obesity is a term given to the fat beyond normal that gets accumulated in the body. The trend is high in western countries, however, India is also catching up with changed lifestyle and erratic food habits.Food items including pizzas, burgers and chowmein, bracketed as 'junk food' are non-nutritious to the body. Besides they also are full of bad cholesterol which is an open invitation to not only cancer, but high blood pressure, headache, swollen arteries and even fatal heart attack in most cases.''There is less awareness among people about the side-effects of obesity and cancer. Health camps and advertisements can play a significant role in dealing with the problem,'' he said.Also, the biggest contribution towards dealing with the menace could by done by the individual alone, who with regular exercise and physical activity can win over the malaise, he said.''One should not become a couch-potato and stick to a vigorous lifestyle that fights back obesity and keeps the metabolism rate normal,'' he opined.Besides, the role of mental toughness and positivity cannot be cornered, he said.''If a person is obese and is a cancer patient, encouraging thoughts of optimism and enthusiasm can even help the patient cure completely. It is advised that despite the disease, the patient continued exercise and watched his/her diet'' he added.India presently ranks third after the US and China with over 41 million obese people.UNI PR SV 0945
-- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0098-553633.Xml
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