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You know those super annoying people who seem to eat endless amounts of junk and never gain an ounce? The ones who swear up and down that they don't work out and don't watch what they eat and yet they effortlessly slide into size 4 jeans every day. Well, as it turns out, a few of them might just be telling the truth. Recent studies have found that there's an enzyme at least partially responsible for making you fat, and some people just don't have it. Lucky jerks.

According to research at the University of California at San Francisco, the enzyme MGAT2 -- found in your intestines -- determines how our food is metabolized; it can either be turned into energy or stored as fat. And studies on mice found that when they were missing MGAT2, they didn't gain either, regardless of how much they ate. That's not all -- the absence of the enzyme also prevented them from developing obesity-related disorders like diabetes.

Still, it'll be a long time until this kind of research can be applied to humans, so in the meantime, make sure you keep eating healthy and exercising.

If you're needing to slim down in a hurry, why not try the Skinny Jeans Workout?

I'm guessing you spend a lot of time thinking about your weight. Some days you might love it, but most days it's the opposite. It has control over your mood and your confidence, and at the same time, it seems like an arbitrary number that you have no control over. It just doesn't seem fair.

And guess what? It's not. Fair, that is. According to this article from Reader's Digest, your weight is determined by many factors you don't have any control over -- your genes, your mother's habits when you were in the womb, your spouse, your family, your career, your busy schedule, illnesses you've had in the past ... and the list goes on, unfortunately.

So what are those who are dealt the fat hand to do? It's up to you to change your habits, change your metabolism, and change your lifestyle to one that's conducive to weight loss. It sucks, but it's true. There's no magic pill (yet), so just as if you were born with a learning disability, you've just gotta learn how to work with what you got. Never fear: AOL Health's America Takes It Off campaign is here to help. One click on the badge below, and you'll surely find the inspiration to make some change.

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Jonny Bowden, author, nutritionist and weight loss coach cuts through all the misconceptions about diet and fitness to help you transform your body, your health and your life.

There's no doubt that genes have something to do with your weight. But not nearly as much as you might think.

According to a new study, lifestyle choices have a lot more to do with insulin resistance and obesity than heredity does. What you do -- or don't do -- can actually "turn on" these genes (or render them inactive).

Insulin resistance is a condition in which the body doesn't process sugar well, and it often leads to diabetes, obesity, heart disease or all three. But with all the talk of finding "genes" for these conditions, we often forget an important fact: Genes interact with the environment.

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It seems like Oprah Winfrey has tried every dieting scheme under the sun. Now she's been linked to a new one, according to this article from The Daily Mail. The GenoType Diet, developed by Dr. Peter D'Adamo, focuses on the belief that weight loss can be achieved by eating for your type -- your GenoType, that is. Genetically, we're all made up differently and following an eating plan specific to our genetic make-ups will help keep us slim.

It sounds complicated but actually, Dr. D'Amano believes there are only six genetic types, so it's somewhat easy to figure out which one you are:

• The Hunter should eat lots of meat and stay away from gluten
  
• The Teacher should have a plant-based diet
  
• The Explorer should have a diet rich in copper
  
• The Gatherer should follow a low-GI diet with lots of protein
  
• The Warrior should stay away from white breads and pasta
  
• The Nomad should get lots of healthy fatty acids
  
  

Want to know which type you fit into? Check out the article. Looks like I'm a pasta-loving Gatherer -- a dangerous combination.

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There's a story in my family about my great-grandmother baking a pie for the family. She tried a sliver, just to make sure it was good, and then another, and then another. Well, she ended up having to bake another pie because, by the time she finished "testing" it, there was nothing left. Obviously it didn't happen much -- she was very thin -- but I've always identified with her through this story.

This has never happened to me (honest), but it makes me wonder if a recent University of Toronto study is on to something. It found that people with a "genetic quirk" drank more sugary drinks, ate more sweets, and consumed more calories from the extra sugar. It's not surprising that these folks weighed more and had larger waists.

Personally, I don't think anyone should blame their genes for having a hard time putting down the cookies -- there are a lot of other factors involved in weight gain and loss. But, it makes me wonder if maybe Great-Grandma Zahrt passed down a genetic quirk.

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We know they are chock-full of antioxidants and other valuable nutrients, but did you know that research has shown that black raspberries can actually alter your genes?

In animal studies, genes that were altered with cancer were returned to normal when black raspberry powder was consumed.

OK people, that's huge! Why aren't you eating black raspberries all the time, every day, at each meal? I jest, because we can't jump on every medical study bandwagon and eat multitudes of foods that are good for us.

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Do you sometimes feel like marriage problems are inevitable? They might be -- recent studies show that marriage problems have been linked to a specific gene variation in males. The gene variation, involved in brain signaling, affected the ability to mate for life in rodents and experts believe that it may produce similar results in humans, based on findings that showed that men with the gene were more likely to be unhappy in their relationships.

Still, don't let these findings get you down. Marriage is hard but a little compassion, understanding and quality time goes a long way. Our Life Fit expert Laura Lewis has some valuable tips on how to make love last -- check them out!

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Are you a couch potato? If so, it turns out that laziness isn't just a bad habit -- it may actually be coded in your genes.

A research team from the University of North Carolina has conducted preliminary studies on mice that suggest our genetic makeup may predispose us to being lazy. The team indicated different genomic areas that regulate activity levels. The research team is gearing up to do a human-based study of a similar nature.

The researchers indicate that genetics account for roughly 50% of the differences in activity. If the same genetic traits prove to be valid in humans, it's certainly an interesting concept. Exercise and activity has by and large been considered a healthy choice to make. And, while even if genes play a role, it still is ultimately a choice -- a genetic difference would show that certain people have a larger natural drive to be active.

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We've all heard about foods so super in their powers they can fight off disease. This past week, broccoli made headlines for its ability to protect men from prostate cancer.

How exactly is this possible?

Researchers believe a chemical in broccoli sparks hundreds of genetic changes, activating some genes that do battle with cancer and turning off others that fuel tumors. This study is more than just evidence backing the notion that a diet rich in fruits and vegetables reduces cancer risk. It's the first human trial that looks at the potential biological mechanism at work. We know it's good to eat fruits and veggies. Now we know why.

Specifically, the broccoli eaters in this study showed 400 to 500 positive genetic changes. Men carrying a gene called GSTM1 enjoyed the most benefit. About half the population have this gene.

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Ever since scientists have had access to the human genome, they've been discovering all kinds of new biological secrets. For example, we've heard from centenarians before who claimed to have the answer for long life. It could have cold showers for this guy, or maybe getting married has something to do with it!

But a new study is saying a large part of it may be due to the fact that some people living extraordinary long lives have mutated genes. The claim is interesting: researchers say a genetic glitch actually disrupts their normal body's growth process. This makes sense in some ways. If a gene is causing centenarians' cells to generate differently, then certainly this would affect their longevity.

They discovered the same link in animals who had really long lives. And the gene variations supposedly halt the aging process! Sounds like science fiction, but I wonder how long it will be before these "genetic glitches" are clinically produced for people seeking the fountain of youth. Now that's a page out of a sci-fi novel right there!

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What if you could get a home kit for testing your DNA: all you had to do was spit into a vial and send it off. The results would be posted on the Internet for your own viewing pleasure. Would you pay $1,000 to do this? Well it's not just hypothetical -- a company called 23andme based out of San Francisco is doing just that by using only people's saliva.

The company likes to brag that "genetics just got personal," and if you haven't made the connection yet, the name comes from the number of chromosome pairs humans have. After sending in your saliva sample, they conduct dozens of tests to assess your risk factor for just about anything. Breast cancer, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, even heart attacks are addressed using this method.

But critics think getting potentially disheartening news about your health right off the Internet at home could be doing the consumer injustice. They say because there's no doctor there to talk you through it, or because saliva was the only thing tested, the accuracy may not be as reliable. That's not stopping some people, however. Even an executive at Pixar took the plunge. If the thought of grappling this kind of news sounds scary, there's always the traditional doctor's office. For others wanting a new way to engage their medical information, this proves how personal the Internet is making every facet of our lives.

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Nature versus nurture: this is the classic comparison between the way we are genetically made, and the way we were raised in our environment. Now the same mentality is coming to a voting booth near you. Is there a possibility that political leanings are genetically acquired, as opposed to being taught?

This is a question that researchers are trying to answer. Scientists are not necessarily saying that there's a Republican gene powering the McCain supporters or a Democratic one backing the Obama campaign. They do think, however, that DNA composition could play a role in how we approach the polls.

In fact, our genetic makeup could influence whether we even vote or not at all! A study tracked certain voters, and they discovered people with a certain variation of one gene were 60 percent more likely to hit the polls than those people without that version. But that doesn't explain how people vote (ie: their political beliefs). Researchers know that we make judgments on these kind of issues by complex processing in our brain. They think the way our brains process political judgments could be hard-wired from birth! Not 100 percent, of course, but at least on a basic level. Pretty interesting theory given the upcoming election. Read on for more information if you're curious.

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Have you ever known an individual who seems to have an incredibly natural ability to pick up music easily? I've known several, and I always used to think they just were "genetically predisposed" to being so gifted. Well, the University of Arkansas has done some research on the topic and discovered that it has more to do with training and practice than genes.

By subjecting musicians to solo recordings of Bach's violin and flute pieces, they used functional magnetic resonance imaging to scan their brains. The activity of their brains mirrored evidence that suggests experience plays a bigger role than genetic makeup.

Those who had more experience with a violin showed increased brain activity when listening to flute renditions. The vice versa was true for flutists. Researchers say if genes played more of determining factor, then the brain activity should have been equal for both recordings. I guess this goes to show you that nothing beats a little hard work!

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The University of Copenhagen out of Denmark has managed to trace the genetic lineage of blue-eyed individuals all the way back to a single ancestor. By studying various people from distinctly unique countries like Jordan and Turkey, they discovered that everyone had brown eyes in the beginning.

However, at some point in our history, a switch was triggered which caused brown eyes to transition to blue. The way this happened was that the amount of melanin in the iris became "diluted" as they put it. This switch appears in the same genetic spot for each person, linking back to a common ancestor. The scientists referred to this as a mutation of the "OCA2 gene" which toned down the amount of melanin produced.

It just goes to show you that mutations such as these can produce beautiful results!

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