Greek researchers get to bottom of prostate cancer and physical activity

by William Atkins

Sunday, 17 August 2008

Page 2 of 3 The researchers independently and blindly grouped the men’s occupations before retirement as either being of high, medium, or low physical activity levels, along with controlling for educational level. They then asked the men questions relating to their jobs. The researchers concluded that “… there was a suggestive inverse association of physical activity with prostate cancer (P for trend 0.12) and a significant one with BPH (P for trend 0.04). The odds ratio (95% confidence interval) for high versus low activity was 0.69 (0.40-1.22) for prostate cancer and 0.59 (0.31-1.11) for BPH." It continues to say, "The association of physical activity with both conditions tended to be more pronounced among men 65 years old or younger. Given the high frequency of occurrence of the examined conditions in the male population and our limited knowledge about other modifiable risk factors, preventive measures may have to focus on increasing physical activity.” In other words, men in sedentary jobs were found to be 31% more likely to have prostate cancer and 41% more likely to have a non-cancerous condition called BPH. According to the News.com.au article “Desk jobs increase risk of prostate cancer,” “Men who worked as civil servants, teachers or in office jobs were much more likely to get cancer than those who spend much of their day on their feet, such as labourers, bakers, and barbers.” The study by the Greek researchers confirms the benefit of regular exercise for men, especially if men work at sedate jobs where they sit all day. In fact, Dr. Lagiou states in the News.com.au article, "In 1997, physical activity was not even listed as a possible protective factor against prostate cancer. During the last decade, however, evidence has accumulated it may convey protection." Check out page three for statistics on prostate cancer. << First page <   1 2 3 Next page > Last page - Post your comment >>

 

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