How obesity dings immune strength and fuels cancer

The heaviest man ever is thought to have been Jon Brower Minnoch. When he was admitted to Seattle’s University Hospital in 1978, his endocrinologist estimated he weighed 1,400 pounds. While that degree of obesity is extraordinarily rare, the latest information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveals that 73% of U.S. adults are overweight, 42% are obese and 10% are severely obese. These days, so many people are seeing their Realage surpass their chronological age and their health destroyed.

One very important way that excess adipose (fat) tissue imperils health is revealed in a study published in the journal Cell. Researchers from Harvard Medical School have figured out that obesity lets cancer cells get the fuel they need to thrive and their rapacious appetite deprives tumor-killing cells of fuel they must have to battle cancer successfully. The cancer cells also rewire their metabolism to respond to a high-fat diet and that makes tumors grow faster.

These findings are in line with research that shows older women who are overweight have increased levels of estrogen and insulin -- both of which increase breast cancer risk. And another study found that obese men are 52% more likely to die from cancer than normal weight men, and obese women’s risk is 62% greater than normal weight women.

Your best cancer-fighting options include achieving and maintaining a healthy weight, reducing your stress response, getting regular physical activity, and eliminating ultra-processed foods and red meats from your diet. Your tumor-fighting immune cells will thank you!

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Mehmet Oz, M.D. is host of “The Dr. Oz Show,” and Mike Roizen, M.D. is Chief Wellness Officer and Chair of Wellness Institute at Cleveland Clinic.