16 year long study – now concludes – “Obesity could lead to cancer”

Nearly everyone knows that obesity is a major cause of cardiovascular problems and diabetes. But what many do not know is that extra kilos can also lead to that emperor of maladies — cancer. Obesity is now pandemic and researchers have noted a statistically increased risk of developing cancers, especially that of the breast, endometrium, colon and rectum, among overweight people. Several studies including one by National Cancer Institute,USA, indicate that there is a direct link between obesity and cancer. Doctors who conducted these studies say unless obese individuals make appropriate dietary changes, obesity could soon overtake tobacco as the top cause of cancer.
The Overseas Development Institute, an independent think tank, found that Indians constitute a huge chunk of the one in three adults who are obese, a total of up to 1.46 billion across the world. Simultaneously, a 16-year-long study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, which followed 90,000 American adults, revealed that the heaviest participants were more likely to develop and die from cancer than participants with healthy weight.