Controlling Risk For Prediabetes May Prevent Cancer
New research provides an important new reason why a healthy lifestyle is key to preventing many chronic and potentially fatal diseases. While it has long been known that people with a condition known as impaired fasting glucose (IFG) or "prediabetes" are at risk for type 2 diabetes, scientists have now discovered that prediabetes also increases the risk of cancer.
According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), being diagnosed with prediabetes means the amount of glucose in a person’s blood is higher than normal – but this blood sugar, as it is also called, isn’t high enough to result in a diagnosis of diabetes. Over time, too much glucose in the blood can damage the body, leading to type 2 diabetes and raising the risk for heart disease and stroke. A recent study published in Diabetologia (the journal of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes) has also revealed that several types of cancers are associated with prediabetes, including malignancies of the stomach, colon, liver, pancreas, breast and endometrium.
A team of scientists, headed by Yuli Huang of The First People's Hospital of Shunde in China, conducted a detailed analysis of 16 studies involving almost 900,000 from all over the world to look for possible links between prediabetes and cancer. Although the amount of risk depends on the specific malignancy, overall the researchers found that having prediabetes increases the risk of cancer by 15%.
The researchers say there are several ways prediabetes may trigger cancer. First, metabolic byproducts produced in the body due to excessively high blood sugar may be cancer-promoting. In addition, increased insulin resistance in people who have prediabetes causes an increase in insulin secretion – and that can spur cancer cells to grow and divide. There may also be genetic factors which predispose some people to an increased risk of both cancer and prediabetes.
"These findings have important clinical and public health implications," the researchers stated. "Many other countries, both developed and developing, are also seeing steep rises in the number of people with both full-blown type 2 diabetes and prediabetes. Considering the high prevalence of prediabetes, as well as the robust and significant association between prediabetes and cancer demonstrated in our study, successful intervention in this large population could have a major public health impact."
In the United States, about 86 million people, or more than 1 in 3 people, are prediabetic, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The good news is that by exercising and losing excess weight, the prediabetic condition can be improved – or even eliminated – slashing both the risk of developing type 2 diabetes and several cancers.
The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDKD) says that by losing 5-10% of weight, a person who is overweight can prevent or delay diabetes and often reverse prediabetes. The NIDDKD recommends cutting the amount of calories and fat consumed daily and being physically active at least 30 to 60 minutes every day to prevent or reverse prediabetes. Physical activity also helps the body use the hormone insulin properly and can prevent excess blood sugar. When these strategies aren’t enough, the NIDDKD notes that prescription medicines can help control the amount of glucose in the blood, reducing the risk of future health problems.
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