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An expert opinion was raised that ‘body fat management’ is an important factor for women’s health management. He also heard that most diseases that occur in women’s uterus, ovaries, and breasts are affected by excessive fat cells.
With the help of Kyu-hee Chae, CEO of 365mc Nowon Branch, who presented this view, I investigated the relationship between women’s health and obesity.
Ovarian cancer, along with pancreatic cancer, has no early symptoms enough to be called ‘silent cancer’, and once it occurs, the mortality rate is high at 47%. Experts recommend that people of a certain age or older start taking care of their health through regular checkups.
However, there are studies that show that obesity not only affects the occurrence of cancer, but also increases the risk of metastasis. The Harper Cancer Research Institute in the US revealed in the international scientific journal ‘Cancer Research’ that skin cells and ovarian cancer tumor cells easily combine in an environment with fat.
Also, as a result of injecting ovarian cancer cells into obese and normal mice, it was confirmed that the possibility of ovarian cancer metastasis to obese mice was high. Considering that more than 90% of cancer patients die due to metastasis, it can be seen that obesity treatment is closely related to cancer treatment.
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women, with 20,000 to 30,000 cases per year in Korea alone. However, it is closely related to the female hormone estrogen. When there is a lot of visceral fat, the concentration of insulin in the body is high, and estrogen is produced excessively.
This situation is the basis for the development and growth of breast cancer. High concentrations of estrogen make it difficult to treat most female cancers as well as breast cancer and increase the likelihood of recurrence. Periodic check-ups are recommended for women with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or higher.
◇ Hormonal disturbance and adverse effects on uterine diseases
Obesity can lead to hormonal abnormalities and disturbances in the autonomic nervous system, leading to various female diseases. A typical example is polycystic ovary syndrome. The main symptom of this is that ovulation does not occur regularly, so the menstrual cycle is prolonged or irregular.
Director Chae said, “When nutrients in the body are excessive, the sympathetic nerve is depleted, which results in the failure to protect the cells that produce eggs. “There is a lot of research going on,” he said.
In addition, uterine fibroids, which are common enough to experience regarding half of women over the age of 35, are also associated with obesity. Uterine fibroids are benign tumors that exist in the uterus. It is different from uterine sarcoma, a form of cancer, and the probability of becoming cancerous is extremely rare.
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| Gyuhee Chae, CEO of 365mc Nowon Branch (provided by 365mc)© News1 |
◇Body fat management is the key to managing women’s diseases… Diet and exercise go hand in hand
Director Chae emphasizes that the basic rules for preventing female diseases are regular checkups and body fat management. “The main source of estrogen is adipose tissue,” he said.
This also applies to women who are skinny and obese. Even if the forearms and thighs are thin, the concentration of insulin in the body increases when visceral fat accumulates due to abdominal obesity.
Managing body fat is no different from other health management rules. Maintaining a high-protein, low-carb diet is fundamental. In particular, 30 minutes of aerobic exercise a day is helpful by reducing estrogen secretion and preventing visceral fat.
Studies have shown that regular aerobic exercise before menopause reduces the risk of breast cancer following menopause.
According to a study by Dr. McCullough at the University of North Carolina in the United States, regular exercise from childbearing to menopause reduced the risk of breast cancer by a third. In particular, regardless of exercise intensity, regular exercise was found to lower the risk of breast cancer.
Another alternative that can be considered when fat accumulation is excessive is liposuction. Director Chae said, “Liposuction itself is not a direct treatment to improve the disease, but it is positive in that it can reduce the possibility of developing diseases caused by fat cells.”
ksj@news1.kr
