Yet Another Disease Linked With Obesity

Posted on Jun 25, 2009 by Andrew in General Health & Fitness, Health Care, Weight Loss .

I know what you’re thinking…. “What could we possibly be adding to the list of diabetes, heart disease, high cholesterol, hypertension, stroke, colon cancer, chronic renal failure, etc. caused by obesity?” To that, I say bravo for knowing your obesity causing diseases! And unfortunately, it looks as though we will be adding pancreatic cancer to the now very long list, according to a recent artilce in the LA Times:

Pancreatic cancer is now the fourth-leading cause of death for men and women in the United States, and the nation’s growing girth among all age groups could be playing a role.”

Here’s a little crash course on pancreatic cancer for those of us who aren’t familiar with this disease (Mayo Clinic):

Pancreatic cancer begins in the tissues of your pancreas — a large organ that lies horizontally behind the lower part of your stomach. Your pancreas secretes enzymes that aid digestion and hormones that help regulate the metabolism of sugars.

Pancreatic cancer often has a poor prognosis, even when diagnosed early. Pancreatic cancer typically spreads rapidly and is seldom detected in its early stages, which is a major reason why it’s a leading cause of cancer death. Signs and symptoms may not appear until pancreatic cancer is quite advanced and surgical removal isn’t possible.”

Did you catch the part that talks about how it’s the ‘leading cause of cancer death’? So what were the conclusions of the study referred to by the article in the Times?

A study examined 841 patients with pancreatic cancer and 754 healthy people of similar age, race and gender. It found that people ages 14 to 39 who who were overweight (a body mass index of 25 to 29.9) or people ages 20 to 49 who were obese (a BMI of 30 or greater) had an increased risk of pancreatic cancer. In the second age group, being overweight or obese was also linked to an earlier onset of pancreatic cancer by two to six years.”

While we all know that the Body Mass Index (BMI) isn’t the best indicator in the world, it can, nonetheless show a correlation between two factors. In this case, the presence of pancreatic cancer and obesity. So if the diseases you mentioned above weren’t enough reason to prevent obesity, maybe the number one killing cancer in the world will do the trick. I guess we’ll see.

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Tags: diseases linked to obesity, diseases of affluence, fitness, health, Nutrition, pancreatic cancer, pancreatic cancer and it's relationship to obesity, what diseases are a result of obesity?

5 Responses to “Yet Another Disease Linked With Obesity”

Brad

Jun 25, 2009

11:09 am

My father died 8 months after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He was not fat. (BMI 23)

Interestingly he had been living strictly since the 70’s on the classic Ornish-style near vegetarian low fat, high fiber, high complex carbohydrate diet and taking statins (he was involved in some of the original clinical trials). In spite of this dietary and drug intervention he still had two heart attacks, and sextuple by-pass surgery.

I suspect his diet and the statins were a significant factor in his getting pancreatic cancer. But at least his cardiologist can say he did not die of CHD.

I read Gary Taubes book, “Good Calories, Bad Calories” while sitting with him in the hospital during his long recovery from the Whipple Procedure (an extreme surgical reconstruction of your digestive system commonly attempted on PC patients) The book completely changed how I approach diet and health. Too bad my understanding was too late to save my father.

Reply to this comment
- Andrew
  
  Jul 09, 2009
  
  7:10 pm
  
  Hello Brad,
  
  I’m sorry to hear about your loss. It’s tough to deal with that sort of situation. I had to watch an uncle die prematurely from health issues related to diet.
  
  All the Best,
  
  Andrew
  
  Reply to this comment
Fatblastzone

Jun 26, 2009

4:10 am

It’s so sad. If only people would make the right choices regarding what they put in their mouths and how often they move their bodies, they could potentially pro-long their lives. Isn’t that convincing enough to get you to change your lifestyle? Apparently not because so many people claim to “lack motivation” when it comes to exercising and eating healthfully. They keep pushing it off. Every day you postpone taking control of your body is another day that you could be subtracting from your life.

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bodydetoxdiet

Aug 03, 2009

6:34 pm

lots of americans and europeans are getting obese these days because of over-eating. people should be controlling what they eat or they should workout their body to burn fat.

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Studio Element Personal Training

Sep 08, 2009

5:54 pm

If I’m not mistaken, obesity is the leading cause of death. (at least in the US.) While the growing obesity rates are good for my personal training business in Saint Louis, I am committed to fighting this issue and helping people realize that they can battle obesity.

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