Britain has been titled the fourth worst in the world for cancer caused by obesity in men. The Lancet study has been described as ‘major’, and experts have said it demonstrates ‘catastrophic’ levels of harm in Britain.
Bad news for men, even worse news for women
Women in Britain are even more likely to suffer from cancer as a result of their weight, however in comparison to other countries on the international league tables, they fared better. The study published in The Lancet Oncology, shows that in Britain, every year 4.4% of cases of cancer in men are due to obesity. This comes as a stark realisation, as the United States scored 1% lower at 3.5% and is the country with the largest obesity problems.
In the UK, 8.2% of cancer among women were linked to obesity, this totalled to 13,000 cases a year, clocking in above the global average of 5.4%. Experts explain this variation between genders, they say it is because risks of female cancer such as breast cancer, are direct;y increased by obesity. Obesity also has close links to womb cancer. Overall, 38 countries fared worse for women and only 3 fared worse for men.
Experts concluded that Britain’s obesity rates were at an ‘alarming’ level, and the disease of obesity is only set to worsen.
Tam Fry, from the National Obesity Forum, said: ‘Putting it simply, these figures show that we are killing ourselves. Despite warnings for years that obesity causes a whole host of health problems, including heart disease, stroke and cancer, the public is paying no attention.’
The results are hoped to push the NHS in making changes in regards their approach to treating obesity in Britain.
