The children of women who were overweight during pregnancy have an increased risk of developing colon cancer later in adulthood, according to an American study quoted by 360medical.ro.
Overweight mothers are often a cause of their children’s suffering, research shows. Overweight women trying to conceive a child are at increased risk of having a newborn with serious problems, informs The Guardian.
The results may explain why the incidence of colon cancer is increasing
A study published in the journal Gut shows that offspring of women who have been overweight during pregnancy have a higher risk of developing colorectal cancer. The results of the study could explain why the incidence of colon cancer is rising among young people in Europe and other developed regions.
“Given the trend among the population in terms of maternal obesity, whose prevalence has multiplied by six since the 1960s, it is possible that in the coming decades we will see the growing burden of early colon cancer,” the team noted. by researchers.
The data of 18,000 people were tracked
Specialists analyzed data collected from women who received prenatal care between 1959 and 1966 in Oakland, California, the information being obtained from their medical records, in the 6 months before pregnancy and until birth.
Then, the medical data of over 18,000 direct descendants of overweight mothers were followed, from the time of adulthood until 2019, monitoring cases of colon cancer.
The results showed that 68 of the children developed colon cancer in adulthood, with half of the diagnoses made before the individuals turned 50 years old. About 20% of those who developed the disease had a family history of the disease.
2.5 times higher risk
After analyzing all the data, the research team found that adult offspring of overweight women during pregnancy had a 2.5-fold higher risk of developing colon cancer compared to offspring with underweight or normal-weight mothers.
The team suggests that nutrients received by the fetus could lead to changes in metabolism, appetite-regulating mechanisms and body fat structure and function. And exposure to excess insulin or high maternal blood sugar could have a negative effect, the researchers say.
The study has some limitations
However, the study has some limitations, including that it did not track the body mass index of offspring in adulthood, nor did it take into account that parents and children often follow the same diet and may share a similar collection of tract germs. intestinal. The team could not determine whether the mother’s gestational diabetes played a role.
The results of the American research come to complete the British studies, carried out by Cancer Research UK, which show that overweight or obese people, with overweight parents, have an increased risk of colorectal cancer.
The disease is on an upward trend
According to a study recently published in CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians (American Cancer Society), the average age at which people are diagnosed with colorectal cancer has dropped to 66 in 2016 (from 72 in 1989).
The main aspects of that study, as identified and taken over by Jacqueline Howard (CNN), are:
• Half of people newly diagnosed with colorectal cancer are under the age of 66.
• If the number of people over 65 newly diagnosed with this disease is declining, the number of young adults (up to 50 years) diagnosed with colorectal cancer has increased (since the mid-1990s).
• From 2012 to 2016, the incidence rate in the latter age group increased by 2.2% annually.
–
