Cancer rates among people who are obese continue to rise, new studies indicate. Watch this week’s WLS News to find out more. Read the full story

Estrogen Thought to Keep Women Fatter

It’s just not fair. A guy who gains a few extra pounds can lose ‘em just by cutting back on potato chips or something. But a woman? Forget it! Women’s bodies tend to hang on to excess fat much more easily than men’s bodies do – but why?

Researchers at Australia’s University of New South Wales think they may have the answer. According to their review of current research, the female sex hormone estrogen is responsible. Estrogen is known to decrease the body’s ability to burn calories; the more estrogen in your system, the more your body stores fat. But, the researchers have now determined that this increased tendency to store fat – while doing nothing for the way you look in your jeans – prepares a woman’s body for childbearing. And since no man can know the inexpressible joy of motherhood, women have about 6–11 percent more body fat than men.

But, while estrogen does increase fat accumulation, it’s not the only reason women become obese. Obesity is a complex medical condition resulting from a combination of factors. Nevertheless, it does have an effect — so you potato chip lovers out there can expect to see additional research into estrogen’s relationship to obesity in the near future.

Cancer Deaths Will Double Due to Obesity, Reports Say

A new report from the World Cancer Research Fund projects that the number of cancer deaths will double within the next forty years – driven by the continued rise in obesity worldwide. The evidence linking obesity and cancer is substantial. Researchers have long known that excess body fat produces hormones, such as estrogen and insulin that can increase the risk of developing cancer. In fact, a 2007 study by the World Cancer Research Fund found that a poor diet and physical inactivity account for 25 to 30% of cancers worldwide. The researchers noted that about 7 million people die from cancer each year. But, as the obesity rate continues to rise not only in the U.S., but throughout Europe and other parts of the world, by 2020 that number could reach more than 10 million people each year.

Now, an international team of experts has now put out a companion report to the 2007 study that doesn’t just address the increase in cancer rates caused by a sedentary lifestyle and poor dietary choices, but also the social, economic and cultural factors behind those trends.
As part of the report, two independent teams of scientists systematically looked at the evidence for how policy changes and interventions influence the behaviors that affect cancer risk. A separate panel of experts then put together specific policy recommendations for government, industry, media, schools and other institutions to help people make healthier lifestyle choices.

The new report underscores the exponential rise of childhood obesity rates in developed nations, and suggests that health authorities make the fight against childhood obesity a public health priority worldwide.

A lack of hormone therapy may contribute to a higher cancer risk for obese women. A seven-year-long study looked at almost a HUNDRED THOUSAND women ages 50 to 71 and found that obese women were no more likely to get ovarian cancer than their thinner sisters– IF they used hormone replacement therapy.

However, women with obesity who had NEVER used hormone replacement therapy were almost TWO TIMES more likely to develop ovarian cancer than women of normal weight.

So why do obese women who don’t take their hormones run a higher risk of ovarian cancer? It could be a concentration of surplus ESTROGEN produced by the fat cells in the body, according to Dr. Michael Leitzmann, one of the researchers of the study.  But, the jury is still out.

If you’ve been prescribed hormone therapy, it might help prevent obesity related cancers.