Globally, obesity continues to grow yearly, nearly tripling since 1975. Today, around 2.5 billion people are obese and overweight. According to the Malaysia National Health and Morbidity Survey (NHMS) 2019, about half of the adults in Malaysia are obese (19.7 per cent) and overweight (30.4 per cent) compared to 2011, with 15.1 per cent obese and 29.4 per cent overweight.
Obesity was once considered a high-income country problem; however, now it is widely observed in low and middle-income countries, including Malaysia, particularly within urban settings. In Putrajaya, 63.3 per cent of adults are obese and overweight, exceeding the national rate of 50.1 per cent.
Obesity can increase the risk of most cancers, including breast, colorectal, ovarian, uterine, oesophageal, kidney, pancreatic, and liver cancers. Compared with normal-weight women, uterus cancer is two to four times more likely in women with obesity.
Obese women have a 20 to 40 per cent higher chance of having breast cancer than normal-weight women. The link between obesity and cancer risk is complex. It involves increased chronic inflammation, higher insulin-like cancer growth factor levels, and hormones (1,2).
Obesity is preventable. The fundamental cause of obesity is an energy imbalance between calorie intake and calories expended. A positive energy balance, in which energy intake exceeds expenditure, causes weight gain attributable to body fat.
Multiple factors are associated with cancer, but avoiding obesity is an important step in lowering cancer risk. Limiting energy intake from total fats and sugar, increasing consumption of fruits and vegetables, and engaging in regular physical activity can prevent obesity and cancer.
In conjunction with this year’s World Obesity Day theme “Changing Perspectives: Let’s Talk About Obesity”, let’s all work together by managing our body weight to ensure happier, healthier, and longer lives for everyone.
Dr. Soh Yih Harng and Prof Dr Moy Foong Ming are from the Centre for Epidemiology and Evidence-Based Practice, Department of Social Preventive Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya.
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