裙子尺碼增加與患乳腺癌風險密切相關

Going up several skirt sizes in midlife could be a warning sign of increased cancer risk, research suggests.

Women who went up a skirt size every decade after their mid-20s had a 33% greater risk of breast cancer after the menopause, say researchers at University College London.

Watching your skirt size from your mid-20s onwards could be a simple way to track weight gain, they told BMJ Open.

Obesity is a known risk factor for cancer, particularly midriff fat.

Prof Usha Menon of the Department of Women's Cancer, who led the study, told BBC News: "If skirt size could be confirmed by others as a good predictor of breast cancer risk in older women, this would be a very simple and easy way to monitor weight gain."

Lifestyle factors

The study tracked more than 90,000 women in their 50s and 60s living in England.

During the three-year follow-up period, 1,090 women developed breast cancer.

The researchers found that a unit increase in UK skirt size every 10 years (for example from 12 to 14) between 25 and post-menopausal age was linked to a 33% increased risk of breast cancer.

Going up two skirt sizes in the same period was associated with a 77% greater risk, they report.

Commenting on the research, Simon Vincent of Breakthrough Breast Cancer said: "We know that 40% of breast cancers could be prevented by changes to lifestyle such as being regularly active and maintaining a healthy weight.

"This study highlights an easy way to monitor your weight gain over time. Women are more likely to remember their skirt size when they were younger than their BMI."

Limitations

The researchers said the study had some limitations - it relied on women being able to accurately recall their skirt size in their 20s.

But if the findings are confirmed, it could give women a simple and easy-to-understand message about the risks of obesity.

Tom Stansfeld of Cancer Research UK said the study could be unreliable as dress sizes had changed over the years and it relied on a woman being able to remember her skirt size several decades earlier.

"Evidence tells us the most important things you can do to reduce breast cancer risk, especially after the menopause, is to keep a healthy weight, be physically active as often as you can, and cut down on alcohol," he said.

"Keeping a healthy weight is important to help reduce breast cancer risk after the menopause, and looking at skirt sizes to help women understand this is interesting, but knowing if you're overweight is more important."倫敦大學學院的研究人員表示，女性過了25歲之後，每過10年裙子如果增加一個尺碼並伴有絕經現象，那麼患上乳腺癌的風險就會增加33%。

從25歲起注意觀察自己的裙子尺寸，是判斷體重是否增加的一個簡便方法，研究人員向《英國醫學雜誌：開放版》（BMJ Open）透露。

衆所周知，肥胖是癌症致病的因素之一，尤其是腹部脂肪。

該研究負責人、女性腫瘤科教授烏莎·梅農（Usha Menon）告訴BBC新聞記者：“若是把裙子的尺寸作爲老年女性患乳腺癌的風險預警信號這一研究能夠得到其他人的認可，那麼這將是監測體重是否增加的一個極其簡便的方法。”

生活方式因素

該研究以居住在英格蘭的九萬多名女性爲調查對象，年齡都爲五六十多歲。

爲期三年的跟蹤調查期間，1090名女性患上了乳腺癌。

研究人員發現，在英國女性從25歲到更年期期間，若裙子尺寸每10年增加一個單位（例如從12碼到14碼），患乳腺癌的風險將增加33%。

研究人員報告還稱，若裙子尺寸每10年增加兩個單位，女性患乳腺癌的風險則將增加77%。

英國抗擊乳腺癌研究中心的西蒙•文森特（Simon Vincent）評論該研究說：“我們知道，40%的乳腺癌可以通過改變生活方式來預防，如定期鍛鍊和保持健康體重等。”

“這項研究強調了監控體重增加的一個簡單的方法。年輕女性大多更容易記住自己的裙子尺寸，而不是身體質量指數（BMI）。”

侷限性

研究人員表示，這項研究也存在一定的侷限性——這需要女性能夠精確地回憶起她們二十幾歲時裙子的尺寸。

然而，研究結果一旦得到證實，女性便可通過這一個簡明易懂的信息來檢測肥胖風險。

英國腫瘤研究中心湯姆·斯坦斯菲爾德認爲，該研究並不可靠，因爲衣服尺寸會隨着歲月推移而改變，而這必須要求女性能夠記得自己幾十年前裙子的尺寸。

“證據表明，女性要想降低患乳腺癌的風險，最重要的事情就是保持健康體重、儘可能堅持鍛鍊身體以及減少攝入酒精量，尤其是進入更年期的女性。”他說道。

“保持健康體重對更年期女性降低乳腺癌風險非常重要。雖然根據觀察裙子的尺寸來幫助女性判斷患乳腺癌風險聽起來十分有趣，但更重要的是要知道自己是否超重了。”