Obesity is a risk factor for many diseases worldwide. Being overweight increases your risk of developing cancer. Do you know how obesity provokes cancer?

According to researchers, obesity causes 13 different types of cancer. Obesity is one of the major risk factors for cancer.

• Breast cancer
• Colorectal cancer
• Pancreatic cancer
• Esophageal cancer
• Gallbladder cancer
• Ovarian cancer
• Kidney cancer 
• Liver cancer 
• Head and neck cancer
• Meningioma
• Thyroid cancer
• Uterine cancer
• Multiple myeloma

How does obesity cause cancer? 
According to experts, inflammation caused by visceral fat (the fat surrounding our vital organs) is responsible for cancer. Excessive visceral fat also affects some processes in our body, like hormone (insulin and estrogen) management.

Obesity triggers inflammation
When we gain excess weight, visceral fat cells enlarge, and the total number of these cells in our body increases. These additional fats do not have much space for oxygen. The lack of sufficient oxygen supply triggers inflammation, leading to disease conditions in the body.

Inflammation links to cancer
Long-term inflammation by visceral fats increases the risk of cancer. Uncontrolled cell division of these visceral cells will lead to the formation of a tumor and then cancer.
Inflammation due to visceral fats hinders our body from responding properly to insulin. This is termed insulin resistance. As a result, our body starts to produce more insulin, which means more cell division. The increased cell production may lead to cancer.
There is a link between increased insulin and the estrogen hormone. More insulin will lead to more estrogen production, which may lead to tumor growth.

Are you overweight?
The best way to determine whether you are healthy or overweight is to calculate your BMI (Body Mass Index). The formula to calculate BMI is dividing a person’s weight in kilograms by his or her height in meters. The BMI formula: weight ÷ height squared x 703.

"Staying active, eating a balanced diet, and getting enough rest are key to preventing obesity"