Being Overweight — and Eating Too Many Carbs — May Raise Thyroid Cancer Risk

A new study published in the February 2008 issue of the British medical journal Lancet has found that being overweight can increase the risk of developing up to twelve different types of cancer, including thyroid cancer. The study suggests a link, but doesn't explain the mechanism behind it, or prove that the excess weight itself is what causes the cancer.

According to the research, in men, a weight gain of 33 pounds increased the risk of esophageal cancer by 52 percent, thyroid cancer by 33 percent, and colon and kidney cancers each by 24 percent, the research found. In women, a weight gain of 29 pounds increased the risk of cancer in the uterus and gall bladder by nearly 60 percent, esophagus by 51 percent and kidney by 34 percent. The thyroid cancer association for women was weaker.

Interestingly, this isn't the only evidence that weight or diet are linked to the risk of thyroid cancer. An Italian study just published in the Annals of Oncology has found that diet heavy in high-glycemic foods and with a high glycemic load -- the glycemic index is a way of categorizing carbohydrates -- is associated with an increased thyroid cancer risk.

Read More:

• Associated Press
• Reuters
• Source: Renehan, Andrew G., etc."Body-mass index and incidence of cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective observational studies," The Lancet, 2008; 371:569-578 / Volume 371, Number 9612, 16 February 2008, Abstract
• Source: Randi1,G., et. al."Glycemic index, glycemic load and thyroid cancer risk," Annals of Oncology 2008 19(2):380-383; doi:10.1093/annonc/mdm433, Online

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