Victoria Stein
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Genes Play a Big Role in Obesity...for a Select Few
Photo: vm2827, Flickr
Remember the adage "you are what you eat"? Well it turns out "you are what your great-great-grandmother ate" may be more appropriate. That is if you're among the small percentage of the population for whom genes may be to blame for a widening girth, according to a review article about genetics and metabolic disorders in the current issue of Nature.
There's more to the story than environmental factors (think lack of exercise and an abundance of high calorie foods) alone,
While this doesn't account for the sharp increases in worldwide obesity and diabetes over the past few decades, it does suggest that we need to rethink the one-size-fits all approach to weight loss. For most of us, it's not just genes and it's not just environment, but the interplay of the two. And a few of us may have a greater genetic predisposition to packing on the pounds. Add to that 64-ounce slushies, 24-hour drive-thrus and hours spent sitting idly in front of the TV and obesity is an almost inevitable outcome.
according to author Stephen O'Rahilly, a professor of clinical biochemistry and medicine at Cambridge University. How different people respond to these triggers is just as important as the factors themselves. "Its main points," said Dr. O'Rahilly, "are to emphasize the importance of inherited factors in both Type 2 diabetes and obesity. In particular it highlights how genetic variants influencing appetite and satiety play an unexpectedly important role in determining who is susceptible to obesity and who is resistant."
While this doesn't account for the sharp increases in worldwide obesity and diabetes over the past few decades, it does suggest that we need to rethink the one-size-fits all approach to weight loss. For most of us, it's not just genes and it's not just environment, but the interplay of the two. And a few of us may have a greater genetic predisposition to packing on the pounds. Add to that 64-ounce slushies, 24-hour drive-thrus and hours spent sitting idly in front of the TV and obesity is an almost inevitable outcome.
Bacon Cheeseburger ... On a Donut?
Photo: Kyle L., Flickr
What do you get when you combine a beef patty, two strips of bacon and a slice of cheese on a Krispy Kreme donut bun? For starters, about a day's worth of calories and roughly 50 grams of fat.
The 1,500-calorie bacon cheeseburger donut is the latest fried-food sensation at state fairs around the country. At the Big E, a 17-day fair in West Springfield, Mass., organizers report selling about 1,000 Craz-E Burgers each day, according to a recent article in the New York Daily News. Ironically, the burger concession stand is located right outside the city's "Better Living" center. Equivalent to about three Big Macs, you'd need to do three hours of high-intensity cardio to burn off the 4-inch burger.
The owner of Mulligan's in Decatur, Ga., came up with the idea in 2005 after running out of hamburger buns. He named the creation the Luther Burger, after singer-songwriter Luther Vandross, who is credited with inventing it. Incidentally, Vandross died of a heart attack at age 54.
Ice Cream May Be Controlling Your Brain
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| Photo: sleepyneko, Flickr |
The UT Southwestern Medical Center study, published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, found that fat from certain foods heads straight to the brain. The fat molecules, in turn, prompt the brain to send signals to the body's cells to ignore appetite-suppressing signals from insulin and leptin, hormones involved in food intake and body-weight regulation.
We already know that saturated fat raises cholesterol levels and increases our risk of heart disease, but these findings indicate that fat intake also disrupts weight-regulating hormone activity. Palmitic acid, a saturated fat found in beef, butter, cheese and milk, appears to be the worst offender.
