Females with the body figure often described as "apple shaped" appear to be at double the risk of some cancers, according to new research.
Over a period of eight years, the study showed that women put in the category with high belly fat were twice as likely to be diagnosed with womb cancer. Scientists analysed data on almost 400,000 UK adults – and the results included research on the amount of visceral fat around the female waist. The findings by Glasgow University also showed visceral fat increased the risk of gallbladder cancer by 83%, kidney cancer by 39%, liver cancer by 25%, colorectal cancer by 14% and breast cancer by 11%.
The findings were presented at the European Congress on Obesity at Maastricht, in the Netherlands. The lead author, Dr Carlos Ceris, told the Mirror : “We know this particular type of fat that you tend to get around your belly is particularly bad. It is the fat that builds around your internal organs. That means it has more of a straining effect on them. This fat is generating inflammatory markers and it is this inflammation that contributes to causing cancers in the long term. The NHS and health systems could do more to flag up this increased risk [linked to visceral fat] to patients.”
Dangerous fat was measured using an index developed by researchers, called the Visceral Adiposity Index (VAI). They say it should be adopted by the NHS to identify patients at risk. Tam Fry, chairman of the National Obesity Forum, said: “The message couldn’t be clearer. Adipose fat – the fat that causes your stomach to protrude – can give you cancer at any level. “From an age when a child can properly understand this, the message should be drummed home. Cancer can kill you and far too many die from it far too young.”
Prof Tom Sanders, of King’s College London, said: “It has been known for a long time that endometrial (womb) cancer risk is increased with obesity and that oestrogen increases that risk. Body fat can increase tissue exposure to oestrogen.”
The Visceral Adiposity Index takes into account weight circumference, body mass index, a test for triglycerides and a test for high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. Triglycerides are a type of fat in your bloodstream. If you eat excess calories, they are converted into triglycerides, which are stored in fat cells. HDL, or “good” cholesterol, absorbs cholesterol and carries it back to the liver. The liver then flushes it from the body. High levels of HDL cholesterol lowers the risk of heart disease and stroke.
Dr Ceris added: “These measures, except for waist circumference, are routinely taken in clinical practice. We need to investigate if adding VAI into population-based screening tools could help us identify individuals at high risk of developing cancer at a much earlier stage.”
Karis Betts, manager at Cancer Research UK said: “Obesity causes 13 different types of cancer and is the second biggest preventable cause of cancer, after smoking. More research is needed to uncover exactly how obesity causes cancer, which includes where we store fat in our bodies.
"One area of research looks at whether fat around organs, known as visceral fat, carries a greater risk than fat under the skin. Though it’s not always easy, keeping a healthy weight reduces the risk of developing cancer and you can stack the odds in your favour with healthy habits like eating a balanced diet and keeping active.”
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