This post is from Healthwise
A large global study involving about 900,000 people from around the world has uncovered a growing cancer menace that most of us are unaware of. If you adjust your lifestyle now, you may be able to avoid this threat.
The meta-analysis performed by Chinese researchers shows that having pre-diabetes, an elevated blood sugar problem that precedes type 2 diabetes, makes you 15 percent more likely to develop cancer.
This study analyzed other studies that looked at people with elevated levels of sugar in the blood. The 16 studies that were incorporated into this analysis took place in Asia, the United States, Europe and Africa.
The scientists point out that the increase in cancer in people with pre-diabetes may be caused by the fact that having continual high blood sugar leads to a state of what’s called “chronic oxidative stress” in the body. That means that harmful substance (free radicals) accumulate that damage cells and cell membranes. In addition, elevated blood sugar can lead to an excess level of advanced glycated end products, toxic substances that can cause cancer.
Another problem arises when insulin resistance comes into play. If your blood sugar is chronically elevated, your pancreas works overtime secreting the hormone insulin that is supposed to stimulate cells to take sugar out of the blood. When the cells resist insulin’s effects, the increased work by the pancreas can allow cancer cells to grow and divide more rapidly.
The researchers warn that in the U.S., the rate of pre-diabetes surged from 29 percent in 2002 to 36 percent by 2010. (It has not yet been determined what the rate is today.)
That means that if you have gained weight and your blood sugar has climbed, you are at an increased risk of cancer (as well as full-blown diabetes). But if you exercise every day, lose weight, eat more fruits and vegetables and eliminate processed food and sugar from your diet, you may be able to avoid these health difficulties.
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