High-fat foods, despite being eaten by individuals with a healthy weight, could contribute to an increased risk of cancer.
Although it is commonly thought that if we are neither overweight nor obese, we should not worry about diet, supposedly because cardiovascular risk is low just because we do not suffer from extra kilos, the reality is quite different. In fact, it is a tremendous mistake to think that " because you are thin you don't need to eat healthy ", because consuming foods rich in fat is not without risk.
It's more. It is also very common to hear thin people say, or their friends tell them: " great, you can eat whatever you want without getting fat." Well yes, surely for aesthetic and weight issues it is great, but at the health level things are not looking good at all. This is confirmed by a new research published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, in which it is stated that the excessive consumption of foods rich in fat such as hamburgers, pizza, or any type of fast food that you can think of, it can contribute to an increased risk of cancer, regardless of body mass index or BMI.
High-fat foods and cancer
According to this work, by Cynthia A. Thompson and her colleagues, the consumption of foods rich in fat would be associated with an increased risk of cancer of up to 10%, at least in postmenopausal women of normal weight. According to Thompson, this would suggest that weight control would not be enough to protect against the risks commonly associated with obesity, since eating the wrong foods, despite being thin, would also have risks.
Likewise, the researchers take the opportunity to recall in a statement that the consumption of foods high in fat, also known as high-energy-density foods, are a modifiable risk factor for reducing the risk of cancer. In other words, knowing that they have their risks, what we must do is either avoid them or consume them as little as possible.
Currently, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, up to 3.5% of new cancers in men and up to 9.5% of new cancers in women are due to being overweight or obese during last year 2012. On the other hand, these percentages would vary according to the type of cancer: up to 54% of gallbladder cancers in women would have been associated with being overweight or obese.
Why obesity increases the risk of cancer
Although there are many studies that have linked overweight and obesity to cancer, the truth is that currently it is not known why such a relationship exists. The current hypothesis is that obesity generates a state of chronic inflammation, which would alter the production of certain hormones, and consequently increase the risk of cancer.
Still, new research continues to link these weight states to cancer, and now this new work also points directly to high-fat foods as part of the problem.
To reach such a conclusion, data from 90,000 postmenopausal women were used, including their diet and any cancer diagnoses. According to the results, excess weight alone may not be the only responsible for the increased risk of cancer, but the foods consumed would have something to do with it: in the same way as foods with high energy density (such as rich foods in fat) increase the risk of overweight and obesity, they would also increase the risk of suffering from cancer, collaborating in the alteration of metabolism.
Finally, it should be noted that this study has some limitations to take into account: it only talks about postmenopausal women, which limits the study in many ways. It has not been possible to assess gender differences, or age differences, among many other factors. It cannot be said that foods high in fat help to have a healthy weight, far from it, but this study would not be enough to raise the alarm as to accuse them of the increased risk of cancer in the general population.
Although, yes, it is a study to be taken into account as a basis for future research, and especially to establish a better dietary control in postmenopausal women.
The ketogenic or keto diet, which involves eating low carbs, moderate protein and high fats, is widely popular for aiding quick weight loss. However, a new study has found that there may be better ways to shed kilos and cut back on your calorie intake. A study published in Nature Medicine analysed both keto diet and, plant-based low-fat diet, to see which one is more effective for fat loss. Led by Kevin Hall, a scientist at National Institutes of Health, the study was conducted on a small group of 20 people, where half of them were asked to follow the keto diet, and the other half were asked to follow a high-carb, low-fat, plant-based diet.