New Study Finds Obesity May Make People Develop Colon Cancer
Are you sick of reading about obesity? I know I sometimes am. But a new study has some startling, and frightening, facts about colon cancer and obesity.
It says obesity primes the colon for cancer, as demonstrated in the study on mice.
Obesity, rather than diet, causes changes in the colon that may lead to colorectal cancer, according to a study in mice, as reported by newswise.com.
A large body of scientific literature says people who are obese are predisposed to a number of cancers, particularly colorectal cancer. Like many things, it all comes down to a gene.
“The obese mice exhibited molecular signals in their gut that led to the progression of cancer, but the NAG-1 mice didn’t have those same indicators,” says Thomas Eling, Ph.D., a scientist at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
After a series of experiments, Eling and his team discovered that gene patterns from obese mice resembled those from mice with colorectal cancer. "The additional weight they carried also seemed to activate more genes that are associated withcolorectal cancer progression, suggesting the obese mice are predisposed to colon cancer," the Web site explains.
It says obesity primes the colon for cancer, as demonstrated in the study on mice.
Obesity, rather than diet, causes changes in the colon that may lead to colorectal cancer, according to a study in mice, as reported by newswise.com.
A large body of scientific literature says people who are obese are predisposed to a number of cancers, particularly colorectal cancer. Like many things, it all comes down to a gene.
“The obese mice exhibited molecular signals in their gut that led to the progression of cancer, but the NAG-1 mice didn’t have those same indicators,” says Thomas Eling, Ph.D., a scientist at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
After a series of experiments, Eling and his team discovered that gene patterns from obese mice resembled those from mice with colorectal cancer. "The additional weight they carried also seemed to activate more genes that are associated withcolorectal cancer progression, suggesting the obese mice are predisposed to colon cancer," the Web site explains.
“Any preexisting colon lesions in these animals are more likely to evolve rapidly into malignant tumors,” Paul Wade, Ph.D, another lead scientist on the team, told newswise.com. “The same thing may happen in humans.”
Still, much work remains to be done identifying the exact process in which the genes that predispose people, obese or otherwise, to cancer are activated. But if you needed any more ammunition that a healthy diet of lean meats, fruits and vegetables and a reasonable amount of exercise can help you avoid this illness, isn't it worth it to try it?
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