variation-related stories
FTO - This Gene Can Make You Overeat
Ever feel like you just can't stop eating junk food no matter how much your willpower tells you to stop for the love of Pete? Yeah, I know the feeling. But don't feel too bad about it -- it might be in your genes. A version of a gene called FTO is believed to cause some people to eat, on average, 100 extra calories per meal. And now for the really unfortunate news: It's estimated that two-thirds of us are affected by FTO. And those with it are 30 percent more like to be obese. No wonder -- those extra 100 calories can really add up -- to about 2,100 calories a week to be precise.
The good news? This gene discovery could help scientists figure out just how to control this obesity epidemic of ours. A pill that would allow
Switch out your workout
Did you know your muscles have a memory? If you keep doing the same old, same old workout day after day the results are likely to slow down, if not stall out.
Women's Health has some subtle variations to traditional strength training moves. The changes are as simple as switching your hand or arm position when lifting weights or raising your feet up a few inches for push ups.
The changes may be minor, but they can give you big results in the long run. For best results, do the traditional moves for one week and then try the variations the next. Alternating the moves will your body guessing and guarantee good results.
Women's Health has some subtle variations to traditional strength training moves. The changes are as simple as switching your hand or arm position when lifting weights or raising your feet up a few inches for push ups.
The changes may be minor, but they can give you big results in the long run. For best results, do the traditional moves for one week and then try the variations the next. Alternating the moves will your body guessing and guarantee good results.
Genetics linked to smoking addiction
Womens Health, Diet & Weight Loss, Celebs & Entertainment, Men's Health
Genetics may be to blame for hooking some people on cigarettes. Genetics may make some smokers more prone to lung cancer too, say three new studies. This is the strongest case so far for the biological foundation of nicotine addiction.
Scientists have pinpointed genetic variations related to smoking that could one day lead to screening tests and customized treatments for those trying to kick the habit.
The gene variations, which govern nicotine receptors on cells, could help explain some of the mysteries of chain smoking, nicotine addiction, and lung cancer -- like why a 90-year-old lifetime smoker never gets cancer, why some people can occasionally light up and never get hooked, and why some people have such a hard time quitting.
Initially, researchers are pretty certain that a smoker who inherits these genetic variations from both parents has an 80 percent greater chance of lung cancer than a smoker without the variants. That same smoker tends to light up two extra cigarettes a day and has a much harder time quitting than smokers who don't have these genetic differences.
The three studies, funded by U.S. and European governments and published Thursday in the journals Nature and Nature Genetics, looked at more than 35,000 white people of European descent in Europe, Canada, and the United States. Blacks and Asians will be studied soon.
Scientists have pinpointed genetic variations related to smoking that could one day lead to screening tests and customized treatments for those trying to kick the habit.
The gene variations, which govern nicotine receptors on cells, could help explain some of the mysteries of chain smoking, nicotine addiction, and lung cancer -- like why a 90-year-old lifetime smoker never gets cancer, why some people can occasionally light up and never get hooked, and why some people have such a hard time quitting.
Initially, researchers are pretty certain that a smoker who inherits these genetic variations from both parents has an 80 percent greater chance of lung cancer than a smoker without the variants. That same smoker tends to light up two extra cigarettes a day and has a much harder time quitting than smokers who don't have these genetic differences.























