But less risk of heart disease
Study finds correlation between height and risk of cancer
Finally, a reason not to envy supermodels.
According to a recent study in the UK, the taller you are, the higher your risk of certain types of cancer.
Several British researchers, in conjunction with the Million Women Study, sought to investigate whether already-proven increased risks of cancer for taller women varied by cancer site or were caused by other factors including socioeconomic status and smoking.
The study, published in The Lancet Oncology, began with nearly 1.3 million participants, who, after follow ups, comprised a total of 11.7 million "people years." In the lives of these nearly 1.3 million women, cancer occurred almost 98,000 times between the onset of the study and the follow ups.
Overall, the study concluded that with each four centimeter increase in height, a woman's chances of contracting 10 of the 17 most common forms of cancer increases by 16 percent.
Findings included a 25 percent increased risk of colon cancer and a 17 percent increased risk of breast cancer for those of us who are not vertically challenged.
Due to the large scale of the study, it was possible to study specific subgroups, including socioeconomic status. According to the study's discussion, women with higher socioeconomic status tend to be both taller and at a higher risk for cancer, but "the association between height and risk of cancer was similar for women of low, medium, and high socioeconomic status."
The findings of the study, according to the publication, could "underlie part of the difference in cancer incidence between populations, and changes in cancer incidence over time." The findings are also consistent with the fact that both average adult height and the amount of cancer incidences in Europe have increased each decade throughout the 20th century.
Houston's KTRK Channel 13 reported that one reason why height is believed to be indicative of cancer risk is because many vertically inclined women have a higher amount of growth hormones in their bodies from a younger age. These hormones are believed to moderately increase cancer risk. Another theory is that taller women have more cells in their bodies, and therefore a higher chance of mutation.
The Channel 13 report also pointed out that the new findings are no reason to fret if you stand tall, as it is still imperative to stop smoking, lose the extra weight, and keep getting regular cancer screening tests, no matter your height. And if you're tall, according to other studies, you have a lower risk of heart disease.
See the Channel 13 report on new study that finds that taller women have a greater risk for breast cancer:
