Colon cancer will afflict about 5% Americans – with close to 97,000 new cases diagnosed each year in this country. It is anticipated that there will be approximately 50,000 deaths attributed to colon cancer this year alone. These statistics clearly point to the significance of understanding risk factors that can be modified with hopes of decreasing a person’s chance of developing this disease.
According to the American Cancer Society, significant risk factors for colon cancer include inflammatory bowel diseases like ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. In addition, a family history of colon cancer increases risk as does a history of having colonic polyps.
Type 2 diabetes is another important risk factor. This fact supports the argument in favor of a diet that is substantially reduced in carbohydrates and sugars. In fact, what I discuss in this video is research that shows that contrary to popular belief, there is no benefit whatsoever in favoring the popular “low-fat diet” if you’re looking at colon cancer risk. There is actually a slightly increased risk for colon cancer associated with a low-fat program, as revealed in this study.
Colon cancer is more common in overweight individuals. And, according to the New England Journal of Medicine, the key to weight loss is to eat more fat and less carbs.
Finally, keep in mind that other lifestyle factors that you can change are related to risk. These include physical inactivity, heavy alcohol use, and smoking.
