Background Most studies that have evaluated the association between the body-mass index (BMI) and the risks of death from any cause and from specific causes have been conducted in populations of European origin. Methods We performed pooled analyses to evaluate the association between BMI and the risk of death among more than 1.1 million persons recruited in 19 cohorts in Asia. The analyses included approximately 120,700 deaths that occurred during a mean follow-up period of 9.2 years. Cox regression models were used to adjust for confounding factors. Results In the cohorts of East Asians, including Chinese, Japanese, and Koreans, the lowest risk of death was seen among persons with a BMI (the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters) in the range of 22.6 to 27.5. The risk was elevated among persons with BMI levels either higher or lower than that range — by a factor of up to 1.5 among those with a BMI of more than 35.0 and by a factor of 2.8 among those with a BMI of 15.0 or less. A similar U-shaped association was seen between BMI and the risks of death from cancer, from cardiovascular diseases, and from other causes. In the cohorts comprising Indians and Bangladeshis, the risks of death from any cause and from causes other than cancer or cardiovascular disease were increased among persons with a BMI of 20.0 or less, as compared with those with a BMI of 22.6 to 25.0, whereas there was no excess risk of either death from any cause or cause-specific death associated with a high BMI. Conclusions Underweight was associated with a substantially increased risk of death in all Asian populations. The excess risk of death associated with a high BMI, however, was seen among East Asians but not among Indians and Bangladeshis.

Green tea consumption is associated with reduced mortality due to all causes and due to cardiovascular disease but not with reduced mortality due to cancer.

The Japanese dietary pattern was associated with a decreased risk of CVD mortality, despite its relation to sodium intake and hypertension.

Objective To evaluate the association between body mass index and mortality from overall cardiovascular disease and specific subtypes of cardiovascular disease in east and south Asians.Design Pooled analyses of 20 prospective cohorts in Asia, including data from 835 082 east Asians and 289 815 south Asians. Cohorts were identified through a systematic search of the literature in early 2008, followed by a survey that was sent to each cohort to assess data availability.

In a population-based, prospective cohort study in Japan, we found no association between green-tea consumption and the risk of gastric cancer.

We conducted a population-based prospective cohort study in Japan to examine the relationship between body mass index (BMI) and the risk of incidence of any cancer and of cancer at individual sites. Body mass index was calculated from self-administered body weight and height at baseline. Relative risks (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated in multivariate proportional-hazards models. Among 27,539 persons (15,054 women and 12,485 men) aged 40 years or older who were free of cancer at enrollment in 1984, 1,672 (668 women and 1,004 men) developed cancer during 9 years of follow-up. In women, after adjustment for potential confounders, the RR of all cancers associated with different BMI, relative to a BMI of 18.5-24.9, were 1.04 (95% CI ‫؍‬ 0.85-1.27) for BMI ‫؍‬ 25.0 -27.4, 1.29 (1.00 -1.68) for BMI ‫؍‬ 27.5-29.9 and 1.47 (1.06 -2.05) for BMI >30.0 (p for trend ‫؍‬ 0.007). Higher BMI was also significantly associated with higher risk of cancers of the colorectum, breast (postmenopausal), endometrium and gallbladder in women. In men, we observed significantly increased all-cancer risk among only never-smokers. Overweight and obesity could account for 4.5% (all subjects) or 6.2% (never-smokers) of the risk of any cancer in women and ؊0.2% (all subjects) or 3.7% (never-smokers) in men. The value for women was within the range among women reported from Western populations (3.2%-8.8%). Our data demonstrate that excess weight is a major cancer risk among Japanese women. © 2004 Wiley-Liss, Inc. Key words: cancer; incidence; Japan; obesity; population attributable fraction Growing evidence indicates that excess body weight is associated with increased risk of cancer of the colon, 1-14 breast (in postmenopausal women), 1,3-9,15-18 endometrium 1-8,19 -21 and kidney. 1,3-5,8 -10,22-24 Adenocarcinoma of the esophagus, 1,4,5,10,[25][26][27][28] cancers of the gastric cardia, 1,5,10,[25][26][27][28] and gallbladder [1][2][3]7,8,10,29,30 have also been suggested to be associated with excess weight. Data for cancers of the prostate, 1,6 -10,31-42 pancreas 2,8,9,43-45 and ovary 2,8,9 are still inconclusive.Most of these reports come from Western populations. There is limited knowledge regarding the risk of excess weight among other populations, 46 -57 whose life-style characteristics and genetic backgrounds substantially differ from those in Western populations. Because variations in those factors could interfere with metabolic abnormalities or hormonal conditions, it is necessary to examine whether excess weight is also a risk factor for cancer among non-Western populations. 3,5,7,58 -61 In addition, there has been limited effort to estimate the total proportion of all incident cancers attributable to excess weight. 1,9,62 One meta-analysis from Europe estimated the proportions of all cancer cases attributable to excess weight: excess body weight accounted for 6% of incidence in women, ranging between 3.9% in Denmark and 8.8% in Spain; and 3% in men, ranging between 2.1% in Greece and 4.9% in Germany. 1 A rec...

The analysis of cancer trends in Japan revealed a recent decrease in mortality and a continuous increase in incidence, which are considered to reflect changes in the underlying risk factors such as tobacco smoking and infection, and are partially explained by early detection and improved treatment.

The analysis of cancer trends in Japan requires periodic updating. Herein, we present a comprehensive report on the trends in cancer incidence and mortality in Japan using recent population-based data. National cancer mortality data between 1958 and 2013 were obtained from published vital statistics. Cancer incidence data between 1985 and 2010 were obtained from high-quality population-based cancer registries of three prefectures (Yamagata, Fukui and Nagasaki). Joinpoint regression analysis was performed to examine the trends in age-standardized rates of cancer incidence and mortality. All-cancer mortality decreased from the mid-1990s, with an annual percent change of -1.3% (95% confidence interval [CI]: -1.4, -1.3). During the most recent 10 years, over 60% of the decrease in cancer mortality was accounted for by a decrease in stomach and liver cancers (63% for males and 66% for females). The long-term increase in female breast cancer mortality, beginning in the 1960s, plateaued in 2008. All-cancer incidence continuously increased, with annual percent changes of 0.6% (95% CI: 0.5, 0.8) between 1985 and 2005, and 1.8% (95% CI: 0.6, 2.9) between 2005 and 2010. During the most recent 10 years, almost half of the increase in cancer incidence was accounted for by an increase in prostate cancer (60%) in males and breast cancer (46%) in females. The cancer registry quality indices also began to increase from ∼2005. Decreases in stomach and liver cancers observed for incidence and mortality reflect the reduced attribution of infection-related factors (i.e. Helicobacter pylori and hepatitis virus). However, it should be noted that cervical cancer incidence and mortality rates began to increase from ∼1990.