I want to lose weight! The relationship between obesity and cancer, doctors say...

"I want to lose weight!" This sentence is often heard from young women, and the first thing they care about is a beautiful figure. People jokingly call gaining weight "gaining fortune". This is probably because in the past, in the heavily industrialized society where materials were scarce and labor was the main source of life, being fat was once a symbol of abundance. However, in the modern society where high-calorie and refined foods are rampant and people live a sedentary lifestyle, obesity is not just a matter of appearance in the eyes of doctors, but also the source of all kinds of diseases. According to the National Nutrition and Health Status Changes Survey from 2013 to 2016, the rate of overweight and obesity among Taiwanese adults was 45.4%, which was an astonishing increase from 32.7% in 1993-1996 and 43.4% in 2005-2008. Such figures also make Taiwan's obese population, both adults and children, the highest in Asia.

Everyone is more familiar with obesity-related diseases. In addition to the common three highs: high blood pressure, high blood sugar, and high blood lipids, it is also easy to cause fatty liver, gallstones, sleep apnea, degenerative arthritis, etc. But what you may not know is that obesity can also increase the risk of many cancers! Numerous medical research results at home and abroad have shown that at least twelve types of cancer have been found to be related to obesity. The National Cancer Institute of the United States also pointed out that obesity increases the risk of cancer, especially esophageal cancer, pancreatic cancer, colorectal cancer, breast cancer, endometrial cancer, kidney cancer, thyroid cancer, and bile duct cancer.

Studies have shown that for every 5kg/m2 increase in body mass index (BMI), the risk of biliary system cancer will increase by 56%, and the risk of rectal cancer in men will increase by 9%. Among adult women who have never used hormone therapy, the risk of postmenopausal breast cancer increases by 11% for every 5 kg increase in weight; and among adult women, the risk of endometrial cancer increases by 21% for every 0.1 increase in waist-to-hip ratio.

There are various hypotheses as to why obesity increases the risk of cancer. Taking esophageal cancer as an example, in recent years, it has been found that the cell morphology of esophageal cancer has changed from squamous epithelium to adenocarcinoma. One of the reasons is that more and more patients are induced by obesity-related gastroesophageal reflux disease. In addition, obesity can also cause cells to secrete hormones to induce the body to produce an inflammatory response, making obese people more likely to get esophageal adenocarcinoma than normal people. Excessive fat intake will increase the production of steroids and hormones, such as estrogen and androgen, which are closely related to breast cancer, endometrial cancer and prostate cancer. For obese postmenopausal women, if they can lose 10 kg and do not gain weight again, the incidence of breast cancer can be reduced by 50%, because obesity and excessive fat intake will increase breast fat tissue and estrogen receptors, thereby inducing breast cancer.

There are numerous obesity-related diseases and cancers, too numerous to list in detail. The appearance of the body can also cause low self-confidence and increase the risk of depression. It can be said that it has no benefits but only harms. But think about it from another perspective. As long as you control your weight and body fat, you can significantly reduce the risk of developing these diseases. Remember the four-word weight loss mantra "eat less and exercise more", and you can "easily" have a healthy life.