Calorie Rich Junk Food Increases Cancer Risk In Women -Study

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Yummy pizzas and burgers might give that satisfaction to your taste buds, but these foods at the same time silently adds to your body weight. Well, this isn't all, according to a new research these calorie rich junk foods increases the risk of cancer in women.

The researchers wanted to find out how the ratio of energy to food weight, otherwise known as dietary energy density (DED), contributes to cancer risk. They looked at DED in the diets of post-menopausal women.

The findings, published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, showed that consuming energy dense foods caused 10 percent increase in obesity-related cancer among normal weight women.

"The demonstrated effect in normal-weight women in relation to risk for obesity-related cancers is novel," explained lead investigator Cynthia Thomson, Professor at Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, University of Arizona in the US.

"This finding suggests that weight management alone may not protect against obesity-related cancers should women favour a diet pattern indicative of high energy density," Thomson said.

In order to gain a better understanding of how DED alone relates to cancer risk, researchers used data on 90,000 postmenopausal women including their diet and any diagnosis of cancer.

The researchers found that the higher dietary energy density foods in normal-weight women may cause metabolic dysregulation that is independent of body weight, and this is known to increase cancer risk.

While further study is needed to understand how dietary energy density may play a role in cancer risk for other populations such as young people and men, this information may help persuade postmenopausal women to choose low energy dense foods, even if they are already at a healthy body mass index.

"Among normal-weight women, higher DED may be a contributing factor for obesity-related cancers," Thomson said.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is for general informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or a qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.