Doctors warn of three new factors driving young people’s colon cancers as maps show who’s at risk

Chemicals in the food we eat, the air we breathe and the water we drink may be driving the global epidemic of bowel cancer in young people, new research suggests.

In the US, colorectal cancer rates are exploding among young Americans, with diagnoses expected to increase 90 percent among people in their 20s and 30s by 2030.

Obesity and poor eating habits are blamed, but that doesn’t explain why apparently fit and healthy patients are increasingly affected.

Now a review of more than 160 studies shows that pesticides in food, toxins in drinking water and air pollution are fueling this trend.

The researchers said this “complex interplay” of environmental factors changes the bacteria in the gut, leading to chronic inflammation that kills healthy cells and causes cancer cells to grow.

The team also suggested that this epidemic of early-onset colorectal cancer (EOCRC) has been decades in the making, with increased exposure to pollutants dating back to 1950.

In the study, they wrote, “There is therefore an urgent need for improved environmental policies aimed at minimizing exposure to pollutants, protecting public health, and alleviating the burden of EOCRC.”

With these findings, DailyMail.com has put together a series of maps charting the impact of colorectal cancer, pollution and water pollution in the US.

The researchers write in the journal Heliyonsaid gastrointestinal health depends on the gut microbiome, a network of bacteria that regulates digestion and the immune system.

However, a lifetime of exposure to factors such as food, antibiotics and chemicals can turn this ecosystem into a ‘critical, unstable state’, where dangerous bacteria outnumber healthy bacteria.

To investigate the rising incidence of colorectal cancer in younger generations, the team looked at environmental exposures in people born after 1950.

The team from Sultan Qaboos University in Oman pointed to particulate matter (PM2.5), a group of microscopic particles so small that the nose and lungs cannot filter them.

This allows them to easily travel to the bloodstream, causing inflammation.

PM2.5 is emitted directly into the air from fossil fuels burned by factories and gasoline-powered stoves and cars, as well as from burning wood in fireplaces.

The increased dependence on factories and gas-producing vehicles has led to PM2.5 increasingly becoming airborne.

The researchers said PM2.5 causes inflammation in the colon, which has been shown to trigger the growth of cancer cells and inhibit the immune system’s ability to fight them.

They pointed to A 2020 study of nearly 60,000 adults in Thailand, which found that PM2.5 from dust and soot was linked to an up to 15 percent increased risk of early colorectal cancer.

The latest figures from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities shows that PM2.5 is most common in southeastern and Appalachian regions such as Ohio, West Virginia, Arkansas, Mississippi and Oklahoma,

These are also the states with some of the highest rates of early-onset colorectal cancer, according to figures from the National Cancer Institute.

West Virginia, Kentucky and Louisiana had the highest disease rates.

The team also cited an increase in the use of synthetic pesticides, which has increased fiftyfold since 1950.

For example, in 1952, only one in ten corn fields used pesticides to help kill pests. But by 1982, 95 percent of corn fields were using them.

Some studies show that up to 80 percent of Americans have detectable levels of pesticides in their blood.

The researchers in the new study said: ‘Pesticide use poses environmental challenges as a significant portion drifts from its intended target and accumulates in unintended species, air, water and soil.

‘This raises concerns about the increased incidence of environmentally induced CRC, which warrants further investigation.’

Research published earlier this year in the journal Frontiers in Cancer Control and Society in more than 3,100 U.S. counties claimed that 73 percent of colon cancer cases were linked to pesticide use rather than smoking.

Although these researchers mentioned inflammation, the exact mechanism for this was unclear.

The team in Oman suggested that pesticides may increase the risk of colon cancer because they are endocrine-disrupting chemicals, meaning they imitate the body’s hormones and disrupt the production and response to natural hormones such as estrogen and testosterone.

The team said these chemicals can cause genetic mutations linked to colorectal cancer.

The researchers also pointed to water contaminated with heavy metals such as lead and arsenic.

Despite experts warning that there is no “safe” level of lead exposure, the EPA estimates that there are still 9 million lead pipes in use nationwide.

When the pipes begin to corrode, the lead leaks through faucets and tap water into the water supply. Drinking water, showering or even just doing the dishes can then lead to exposure.

Once consumed, lead can travel through the blood throughout the body and lodge in soft tissues such as the kidneys, liver or lungs, damaging these organs.

This has led to the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classifying the metal as a ‘probable’ carcinogen, meaning high exposure is likely to cause cancer.

Research in the journal Science of the total environment suggests that toxic metals such as lead build up in the bloodstream, traveling to areas such as the colon and killing healthy cells.

EPA findings show that Alaska, New Mexico and Louisiana had the most water quality violations between 2019 and 2023.

According to the National Cancer Institute, all three of these states have reported high levels of early-onset colorectal cancer.

There were several limitations to the new research.

The researchers cited several studies that they assessed as observational, meaning they do not establish a direct cause between these environmental factors and colon cancer.

Additionally, they said more research is needed to determine exactly which gut microbes lead to an increased risk of colon cancer.

The researchers wrote: ‘These findings highlight the need for more research into the specific environmental factors and their epigenetic impact, to inform prevention and treatment strategies for EOCRC.’