As the obesity epidemic continues to spread, costing more and more money for Americans, Type 2 Diabetes has become more common as well. Obesity is the number one risk factor for Type 2 Diabetes, so this is no surprise. What is still becoming clear is that both obesity and diabetes change your risk of cancer.

We have talked many times before about how obesity is itself a risk factor for many sorts of cancer. Diabetes makes your risk worse! A 2008 meta-study showed that diabetes increases the risk of dying of cancer 1.4 times. And new research shows that diabetes may double the risk of ovarian and colon cancer in women. The suggestion is that there is something about the interaction of insulin with female hormones such as estrogen.

So preventing Type 2 Diabetes is important to reduce your risk of cancer. While there are genetic and other factors at work, the one thing you can do to reduce your risk of diabetes is to maintain a healthy weight through healthy diet and exercise.

This research is just one more nail in the coffin of “fit but fat.”