Seven forms of cancer are attributable to alcohol: that of the breast, colon, liver, esophagus, rectum, larynx, and oropharynx. And of cancer deaths, alcohol is responsible for 6% of deaths. In a studypresented at the annual congress on obesity, Australian researchers estimate that the risks of developing a drink-related cancer would increase in people whose body mass index is too high.
399,575 people were observed over 12 years, thanks to a cohort from the UK Biobank. They were aged 40 to 69, without already having cancer when the researchers collected their first examinations. Their data included their BMI, waist circumference, body fat percentage and alcohol consumption.
Two types of cancers were analyzed over this period: alcohol-related cancers, which numbered 17,617, and those related to obesity, just over 20,000. is attributed to obesity, a 2019 study had pointed to that of the uterus, gallbladder, kidneys and thyroid. Then, the results were cross-checked to try to understand how obesity, or a high body fat rate, could promote the development of alcohol-related cancers.
Exponential increase in risks
Result : overweight, a high waist circumference or body fat, would be factors that made alcohol even more dangerous in the face of cancer. For example, during this study, they realized that a person with a high level of body fat, who would drink alcohol reasonably, has a 53% greater risk of declaring a drink-related cancer, compared to someone with low body fat who wouldn’t drink. For obese people who would drink beyond the recommended limits, the over-risk estimate increases to +61%.
The researchers call on overweight people to pay particular attention to their consumption of alcoholic beverages, which expose them more than others to these diseases.
Source: Overweight and obesity may exacerbate harmful effects of alcohol on cancer risk, Eurekalert, May 2022.
Read also:
- Alcohol directly responsible for 7 forms of cancer
- Obesity: an established link with different types of cancer
