Governments Must Confront Obesity and Poor Diet as Drivers of Rising Early-Onset Cancers, as They Once Confronted Big Tobacco
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/profile/editorial. "The Guardian view on cancers in under-50s: the risks of obesity must be confronted | Editorial | The Guardian." October 8, 2026. www.theguardian.com
The Gist
Cancers in younger adults are rising, and while screening explains some of it, the main driver appears to be obesity and poor diet. Governments beat smoking with tough rules and public messaging, but have shied away from doing the same for food under industry pressure. The Guardian argues that they should stop waiting for more research and act boldly now.
Conclusion
Governments should act boldly against the causes of obesity, as they once did against big tobacco, because obesity and poor diet are already known to contribute to the rise in cancers among under-50s, even though more research is needed.
Premises
- Cancers in people under 50 (notably colorectal, uterine and kidney cancers) are rising in England, the Netherlands and the US, according to the latest World Cancer Research Fund findings.
- Earlier detection explains part of the increase, but diagnostic improvements are not the main reason for the rise in cases.
- Existing evidence points to obesity and poor diet as causes of cancer, as well as heart disease and type 2 diabetes.
- Regulation combined with public messaging against smoking succeeded in cutting lung cancer, including in under-50s, which shows that determined public health action can change behaviour.
- Efforts to cut obesity have so far had nothing like the same impact; in the UK, successive politicians have watered down obesity plans in the face of food and drink industry opposition.
- Obesity and diet are closely linked to poverty, so inaction risks widening health inequalities as cancer treatment improves for some groups while risks grow for others.
Assumptions
- The observed association between obesity/poor diet and cancer is causal and strong enough to justify policy action before research is complete.
- The rise in early-onset cancers is driven mainly by obesity and diet rather than by other unidentified factors.
- The tobacco regulation model can be transferred to food and obesity, despite differences between the two (everyone must eat, food is not uniformly harmful, and obesity has many causes).
- Government regulation and messaging are effective and appropriate tools for changing diet and obesity rates.
- Industry lobbying is the main reason obesity policy has been weak, rather than doubts about which policies work.
- Reducing obesity would meaningfully reduce early-onset cancer incidence.