A recent study has revealed that obesity is connected to over half of all cancer incidents highlighting the need to stay fit through exercise and controlling one’s diet. According to The Telegraph, Sweden’s Lund University examined 4.1 million people over 40 years, keeping a careful eye on their weight and lifestyle. Over the period, more than 332,000 cancer cases were identified.
According to the report, in 40% of these cases, there appeared to be a link between obesity and cancer development. In total, university researchers discovered 32 types of cancer linked to obesity. The report said that previously, international research identified 13 types of cancer associated with obesity.
The results of the study will be presented at the European Congress on Obesity in Venice.
The results of the study, according to researchers, have significant importance for public health. “Established obesity-related cancers accounted for 25 per cent of all cancer cases in this study, and the proportion increased to 40 per cent when potential obesity-related cancers were added,” the researchers stated, adding that maintaining a normal weight might avoid a significant proportion of cancers.
The European Association for the Study of Obesity (EASO) president, Professor Jason Halford, told the publication that the study was a strong, large-scale analysis. “As always, more research is needed but it reveals what many studying the links between cancer and obesity have suspected; that obesity is likely to be a risk factor for many more types of cancer than we had evidence for before.”