I want to tell you about the association between Type 2 diabetes with increased cancer risk — not to scare you, but to incentivize you to take charge of your future health and embrace a longer, younger, happier life.

After all, you have to recognize life's potential potholes to successfully navigate around them. Let’s make the trip together.

Type 2 diabetes and obesity in your middle years have been found to increase the risks for liver, endometrial, kidney, biliary, thyroid, rectal, colon, pancreas, and blood cancers. In some cases doubling the chance of developing the disease, according to a new study in JAMA Network Open.

The association exists because of the chronic inflammation that accompanies Type 2 diabetes and the metabolic dysregulation it causes, affecting everything from your guts to your immune system.

Poor nutrition is also a contributor to your risk for developing Type 2 diabetes and cancer, specifically in the gastrointestinal tract.

A study in the journal Nutrition Reviews found that eating an unhealthy diet loaded with processed meats, refined grains, and sweets is associated with an increased risk of colorectal and liver cancers, as well as gastrointestinal cancer in women.

The trick to reducing those diabetes-associated elevated cancer risks is to know "What to Eat When" and to use the "What to Eat When Cookbook."

By eliminating glucose-spiking, fat-adding, highly processed foods, red and processed meats, and added sugars, you’ll dramatically reduce your risk of diabetes, obesity, and cancer.