Breast Cancer Risk
WLR dietitian Juliette Kellow highlights the importance to women
of maintaining a healthy weight throughout life in order to
reduce the risk of breast cancer when they are older.
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Piling on the Pounds Boosts the Risk of Breast Cancer
By WLR Dietitian
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New research this month reveals that gaining weight
throughout adulthood significantly increases the risk of breast
cancer in postmenopausal women – and the more weight you gain,
the greater the risk becomes.
The study, carried out by
scientists at the American Cancer Society, included more than
44,000 postmenopausal women who were not taking hormone therapy.
The researchers discovered that gaining weight after the age of
18 increased the risk of all types of breast cancer in older
women.
Women who gained more than 60lb throughout their adult
years were twice as likely to have tumours in the ducts of their
breasts (ductal breast cancer) than those women who gained less
than 20lb. They were also one and a half times more likely to
have cancer in the lobes of their breasts (lobular breast
cancer) and three times more likely to have tumours that spread
to other parts of the body.
WLR says:
This research gives women a clear picture about the
importance of maintaining a healthy weight throughout life in
order to reduce the risk of breast cancer when they are older.
Levels of circulating oestrogen, a female reproductive hormone,
are thought to have an important role to play in determining
breast cancer risk. After the menopause, levels of oestrogen
drop. This is good news because oestrogen is thought to boost
the growth of most breast cancers.
However, obese women tend to
have higher circulating levels of this hormone even after the
menopause, because oestrogen is produced in body fat. And it’s
this that’s thought to increase the risk of breast cancer.
Bottom line: one of the easiest ways to lower your risk of
breast cancer is to lose any excess pounds – and remember, it’s
never too late to take action.
More Information
www.cancerresearchuk.org
The UK's leading charity dedicated to cancer research.
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