Being tall increases the risk of six types of cancer

0

Analysis conducted by a cancer study shows that taller people have a higher risk of developing six different types of cancer.

It is well known that there are a number of factors that can increase the risk of developing cancer. Diet, weight and lifestyle, such as smoking and drinking alcohol, can increase your chances of developing the disease, writes Express. However, there are other factors that we cannot influence.

Your height is one of these factors.

As part of the association's Continuous Update Project, the team analyzed global data on the relationship between diet, weight, physical activity, and cancer.

There is strong evidence that the taller you are, the higher your risk of ovarian, prostate, pancreatic, colon, breast, and kidney cancers.

Specifically, it concluded that every additional five centimeters of height increases the risk by the following amounts:

• Kidney – 10 percent increased risk
• Breast cancer before and after menopause – 9% and 11% respectively.
• Ovarian – 8% percent
• Pancreatic – 7% percent
• Colorectal – 5% percent
• Prostate – 4% percent.

Why does height affect cancer risk?

The risk of developing cancer lies in the process of growing, not in height itself. The most important thing to remember is that it is not a person’s height itself – that is, the distance from head to toe – that increases the risk of developing cancer.

The process your body went through to make you tall is linked to cancer. This process is influenced not only by your genes, but also by modified developmental factors (for example, growth factors such as insulin, insulin-like growth factor, growth hormone and sex hormones such as estrogens) in the womb, childhood and adolescence. Therefore, height should only be considered as a marker or indicator of the entire series of events and experiences from conception to adulthood – and it is important to determine which aspect or aspects of this process influence the risk of developing cancer.