Overeating and Obesity during Menopause Linked to Breast Cancer

According to recent online medical article obese women may be able to reduce their increased risk for postmenopausal breast cancer by taking preventative measures during perimenopause to avoid weight gain and to therapeutically control the metabolic effects of their obesity according to results published from a preclinical study in Cancer Research, a Journal of the American Association of Cancer Research. “Obese postmenopausal women have increased risk for breast cancer and poorer clinical outcomes compared with postmenopausal women who are lean,” said Paul S. MacLean, Ph.D., associate professor of medicine at the University of Colorado Anschutz Health and Wellness Center in Aurora, Colo. “The reasons for this are not fully understood. According to the article, since humans cannot be used to study the effects of obesity on menopausal women, rat models were used to best mimic the events that are associated with perimenopausal obesity and menopause. During menopause, many women are likely to gain weight as they consume more food than their body actually needs. In this study obesity rendered the rats unable to appropriately handle the consumption of excess food in the forms of glucose and dietary fat. This accumulated as a result of over eating. Lean rats were more likely to store their excess glucose and dietary fat in the liver, fat, muscle, and healthy breast tissue. This is a normal metabolic response to overfeeding. Contrastingly, the healthy tissues in obese rats were not able to increase the uptake of glucose and dietary fat, but the breast tumors significantly increased with the uptake of glucose. Researchers point out that it is premature to assume that the findings in rats will translate to humans. But, if the findings are similarly related than the perimenopausal time in a woman’s life is a critical window for determining breast cancer risk later in life. Positively it could mean that by aggressively managing perimenopausal weight gain, obese women’s risk for breast cancer could be significantly decreased. Dr. Seify shares with patients the advantages of body contouring procedures for women who are in their mid-40s to mid-50s. This is the age when many women are likely to be perimenopausal and could have small areas of fat that are both unattractive as well as bothersome. Dr. Seify is likely to recommend liposuction as a body contouring method for dramatically improving the shape and contour of the body. Perimenopausal women often complain of excess fat on the abdomen, upper back, and outer thighs. These areas respond nicely to liposuction and allow Dr. Seify to sculpt the area and create a more svelte and pleasing appearance. Patient should consider body contouring procedures like liposuction or abdominoplasty as soon as they notice an increase in their waistline or small amounts of fat in unwanted areas. Patients who are considering liposuction or abdominoplasty are encouraged to contact Dr. Seify and schedule a consultation.