What I’m Doing to Reduce My Cancer Risk After My Dad’s Diagnosis

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How Belly Fat and Insulin Resistance Quietly Fuel Cancer Risk (And What to Do About It)

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DISCLAIMER:

When my dad was diagnosed with cancer, I did what I always do, I went deep into the research to learn what I could do to lower my own risk. This video is the result of that. I’m not a doctor and this is not medical advice, but I believe this information is too important not to share. Always work with your healthcare provider.

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One of the pillars of my content over the past 16 years has been teaching the world the importance of taking preventative action.

In other words, making healthy decisions today, so you can thrive in your golden years. 

Sure some things are out of our control, however, as my dad once told me, “Control what you can control.”

Well, the science overwhelming points to one major preventable driver of cancer risk in our control…

Our metabolic health.

Most men think cancer is a roll of the dice.

Bad genes.

Bad luck.

Nothing you can do about it.

That’s not entirely true.

There’s a metabolic side to cancer risk that almost nobody talks about, and it’s one of the only levers you can actually pull to stack the odds in your favor.

On today’s episode of Live Lean TV, I’m going to break down exactly how your body fat, your blood sugar, and your insulin levels are either protecting you, or quietly feeding a cancer risk you don’t even know you have.

This is the stuff I wish every man in his 30s and 40s understood.

To be respectful of your time, I’ve included jump to links to each section below.

Table Of Contents: Jump To Links

Let’s get into it.

The link between excess body weight and cancer is stronger than you think.

Obesity Significantly Increases Your Risk For Certain Cancers

Here’s a stat that should wake every man up.

The American Cancer Society says excess body weight is the second leading modifiable risk factor for cancer cases and cancer deaths, second only to smoking.

Being overweight or obese is linked to roughly 5% of cancers in men, 11% in women, and 7% of all cancer deaths in the US.

Obesity and type 2 diabetes are driving increased risk, in some cases doubling the risk for some of the deadliest cancers, including esophageal, liver, and pancreatic.

So if you’re carrying excess weight, this isn’t just a body composition problem.

This is a longevity problem.

Here’s why Type 2 diabetes dramatically increases your risk of developing certain cancers.

Diabetes Significantly Increases Your Risk For Certain Cancers

If obesity is the warning light, type 2 diabetes is the alarm going off.

According to this research from the American Diabetes Association and the American Cancer Society, type 2 diabetes can roughly double your risk of developing certain cancers like liver and pancreatic cancer.

And the reason comes down to two things:

• chronic inflammation
• growth factors, specifically insulin

Here’s the thing, type 2 diabetes and high insulin resistance clearly increase the risk of cancer.

But they are largely preventable and reversible.

That makes this one of the lowest-hanging pieces of fruit in your anti-cancer strategy, right next to not smoking.

Getting your metabolic health dialed in isn’t just about energy and body composition.

It may literally save your life.

Now let’s look at why excessive insulin production may become a cancer enabler.

How Excessive Insulin Feeds Cancer Growth

This is where it gets really interesting.

Inside your cells, there’s a signaling pathway called PI3K, phosphoinositide 3-kinase.

Think of PI3K as a gate that controls how much glucose floods into a cell to fuel its growth.

Here’s where it gets dark.

Cancer cells have specific mutations that crank up PI3K activity while simultaneously shutting down your tumor-suppressing protein, PTEN.

When insulin and IGF-1 activate this pathway, cancer cells can devour glucose at a faster rate.

Excessive insulin production, in this scenario, is literally acting as a cancer enabler.

This is exactly why spiking insulin is one of the last things you want to do if cancer is already present.

Now let’s talk about why belly fat can create a cancer-friendly environment in your body.

Belly Fat Is Fueling Cancer Risk

Here’s something most guys don’t realize about belly fat.

It’s not just sitting there doing nothing.

Visceral fat, the deep abdominal fat packed around your organs, is metabolically active.

As visceral fat cells become stressed and die off, immune cells flood in and release inflammatory proteins called cytokines directly into your bloodstream.

That chronic, low-grade inflammation creates exactly the kind of biological environment where cells are more likely to mutate and become cancerous.

Your immune system, specifically your lymphocytes, your white blood cells, is constantly working to catch and destroy those mutated cells.

But chronic inflammation makes that job a lot harder.

The less visceral fat you carry, the less inflammatory fire your immune system is fighting 24/7.

Labcorp OnDemand Healthy Aging Test Review

You just learned that insulin resistance, chronic inflammation, and excess visceral fat aren’t just body composition problems, they’re cancer risk factors.

But here’s the thing.

Most men have no idea where they actually stand on any of these markers.

That’s exactly why I use today’s sponsor, Labcorp OnDemand’s Healthy Aging Test.

This is the same comprehensive blood panel I use to stay on top of my own metabolic health, and it checks the exact markers we just talked about in this video:

• Insulin levels
• HbA1c — your diabetes risk marker
• hs-CRP — your inflammation marker
• Full metabolic panel including liver function
• Plus thyroid, heart health, nutrients like Vitamin D and B12, and more

No doctor’s visit needed.

You purchase it online, walk in or make an appointment at a nearby Labcorp patient service center, get your blood drawn, and have clear results in just a few days.

And here’s why I take this seriously.

After reviewing my own results, almost all of my markers were in the optimal range, except for one.

My HbA1c was just outside the normal range.

That surprised me and was a real eye opener.

Based on how I eat, mostly low carb, I would’ve assumed it was perfect.

That’s exactly the problem with making assumptions rather than knowing your numbers.

Metabolic health issues can build quietly over years without obvious symptoms.

You can feel fine and still be trending in the wrong direction.

This test gives you real data, not feelings, so you know exactly where you stand and can take action early, before small issues become big problems.

That’s not just how you extend your lifespan.

That’s how you actually protect it.

If you never had your metabolic markers checked, this is your wake up call.

Go to liveleantv.com/healthyagingtest and use promo code: LiveLeanAging for 20% off your Labcorp OnDemand Healthy Aging Test.

Thanks to Labcorp OnDemand for helping me stay proactive about my long-term health.

Some modifiable cancer risks are within your control.

The Cancer Risks You Can Control

Here’s the most important reframe of this entire video.

You cannot control your genetics.

You cannot prevent every random cellular mutation that happens over a lifetime.

But the metabolic factors that feed cancer?

Those are largely within your control.

There are many modifiable cancer risks, but a few carry more weight than the rest:

• Smoking
• Insulin resistance
• Obesity
• Air and water pollution

These are the ones worth obsessing over.

Everything else is largely fixed.

Let that sink in for a second.

And the research backs this up hard.

Lab animals on calorie-restricted diets die from cancer at dramatically lower rates than animals eating whatever they want.

So what does an anti-cancer diet actually look like, here’s what the research consistently supports.

The Diet That Starves Cancer Risk

So if high insulin is the enemy of cancer prevention, what does your diet actually need to look like?

The core principle is anything that keeps insulin low and stable is working in your favor to slow the growth of cancer and reduce cancer risk.

Research consistently shows that breast cancer survivors who ditch added sugar and refined carbs, and load up on leafy greens, broccoli, cauliflower, and brussels sprouts, tend to have significantly better outcomes.

Add in healthy fats from olive oil, avocados, and nuts, plus lean protein from fish, eggs, and poultry, and you’ve got a dietary profile that the research consistently supports.

Beyond that, ketogenic diets, intermittent fasting, and very low-calorie protocols that are designed to provide essential nutrients while reducing feelings of hunger, have all shown the ability to improve chemotherapy effectiveness while reducing damage to healthy tissue.

The hypothesis is compelling: cancer cells are so metabolically greedy that they’re actually more vulnerable than healthy cells when you cut off the nutrient and insulin supply.

Starve the environment.

Starve the risk.

Here’s Your Anti-Cancer Action Plan

Look, I train hard.

I eat clean.

I manage stress.

But none of that replaces actually knowing your numbers.

Insulin resistance doesn’t announce itself.

It builds quietly over years.

And by the time it shows up as a diagnosis, the metabolic damage has been happening for a long time.

That’s why I test regularly.

That’s why I use Labcorp OnDemand.

Not because I’m paranoid, because I’m proactive.

There’s a difference.

You now know the connection.

Excess body fat, elevated insulin, chronic inflammation, these aren’t just body composition problems.

They’re cancer risk factors you can actually do something about.

So here’s your anti-cancer action plan:

• Don’t smoke
• Get your blood markers checked
• Dial in your nutrition to keep insulin low
• Reduce visceral fat

Most men will never connect these dots.

Now you have.

If you want to get the same test I use to track my insulin, inflammation, and metabolic health, go check out Labcorp OnDemand’s Healthy Aging Test and use promo code: LiveLeanAging.

And if this post opened your eyes, click the social media buttons to share it with someone who needs to hear it, and subscribe to Live Lean TV on YouTube.

To continue your longevity journey, go check out this video next where I share The 2 Blood Markers That Predict Heart Disease Better Than Cholesterol (ApoB & Lp(a)).

Keep Living Lean.