WHO guidelines on waist circumference and physical activity and their joint association with cancer risk

Scientists from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and partner institutions provide new evidence to support guidelines on waist circumference and physical activity established by the World Health Organization (WHO), in the first study of its kind examining the relationship between waist circumference, physical activity, and cancer risk. The study was published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

The research team examined data from more than 315 000 UK Biobank participants, who were assigned to groups according to their waist circumference, self-reported level of physical activity, and adherence or non-adherence to WHO guidelines on waist circumference and physical activity. The researchers then examined data from the same participants, collected 11 years after the initial data set, to estimate the proportion of cancers linked to abdominal obesity and low physical activity.

Participants with a waist circumference above the WHO high-risk threshold were 11% more likely to develop cancer, even if they were physically active according to the WHO guidelines. Similarly, participants who did not meet the WHO guidelines on physical activity had a 4% higher cancer risk, even if their waist circumference was below the high-risk threshold. Participants who did not adhere to either guideline had the highest cancer risk and were 15% more likely to develop cancer.

WHO established a high-risk threshold for waist circumference as > 88 cm for women and > 102 cm for men. The WHO guidelines on physical activity recommend at least 150–300 minutes per week of moderate-intensity physical activity such as brisk walking, or at least 75–150 minutes per week of vigorous-intensity physical activity such as running, or an equivalent combination of moderate-intensity and vigorous-intensity aerobic activity throughout the week.

This study underlines the importance of meeting WHO guidelines on both waist circumference and physical activity for cancer prevention. The research was funded by World Cancer Research Fund, the French National Cancer Institute (INCa), and the German Research Fund.

Bohmann P, Stein MJ, Amadou A, Baurecht H, Fervers B, Fontvielle E, et al.
WHO guidelines on waist circumference and physical activity and their joint association with cancer risk
Br J Sports Med. Published online 22 January 2025;
https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2024-108708

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