Obesity News and Research

Latest Obesity News and Research

Children need a certain amount of fat in their diet

Parents should think twice before offering a low-fat menu to youngsters, despite concerns over obesity.

17 Aug 2007

Cytokines shown to be a cause of type 2 diabetes

In the first large scale, multiethnic study of its kind, researchers at UCLA have confirmed the role played by three particular molecules known as cytokines as a cause of Type 2 diabetes, and further, have identified these molecules as early biological markers that may be used to more accurately predict future incidences of diabetes among apparently healthy individuals.

16 Aug 2007

Eating junk food during pregnancy and breastfeeding gives offspring taste for junk food

Mothers who eat junk food during pregnancy and breastfeeding may be putting their children at risk of overeating and developing obesity, according to a study funded by the Wellcome Trust and carried out at the Royal Veterinary College, London.

16 Aug 2007

Diabetes increases risk of death for patients with acute coronary syndromes

Individuals with diabetes and acute coronary syndromes (ACS) such as a heart attack or unstable angina have an increased risk of death at 30 days and one year after ACS, compared with ACS patients without diabetes, according to a study in the August 15 issue of JAMA .

16 Aug 2007

Living in America - you don't live quite as long!

According to the National Centre for Health Statistics, despite being one of the richest countries in the world, America has dropped to 42nd place in the world rankings of life expectancy.

15 Aug 2007

Pregnant women advised to cut out junk food for their child's sake

British researchers are warning pregnant women that a penchant for junk food may be condemning their children to crave the same diet.

14 Aug 2007

New child growth charts will mean many babies are too fat

New child growth charts are being advocated in the UK which accurately reflect the slower weight gain associated with breastfeeding.

14 Aug 2007

Desperate measures for desperate times - ban school car run and cut obesity!

Desperate times call for desperate measures and the latest idea to cut obesity rates especially in children is calling for 'car exclusion zones' around schools.

14 Aug 2007

Gene use sets humans and chimps apart

The striking differences between humans and chimps aren't so much in the genes we have, which are 99 percent the same, but in the way those genes are used, according to new research from a Duke University team.

13 Aug 2007

Overweight kids at greater risk of school absenteeism

In the first study of how weight may affect school attendance, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and Temple University have found that overweight children are at greater risk of school absenteeism than their normal-weight peers.

13 Aug 2007

Obesity and poorer school attendance go hand in hand

New research in the U.S. has found that there is a connection between school attendance and obesity.

12 Aug 2007

Fat people are attracted to other fat people

Researchers in Britain say they have found that people often choose partners with similar body fat levels as themselves.

12 Aug 2007

Leptin controls our fondness for food

Scientists have discovered that leptin, one of the key hormones responsible for reducing hunger and increasing the feeling of fullness, also controls our fondness for food.

12 Aug 2007

FGFR4 gene plays a complex role in obesity, fatty liver and diabetes

Researchers at the Texas A&M Health Science Center Institute of Biosciences and Technology at Houston have found that a gene in the liver and elsewhere in the body, when inhibited or increased, affects fatty liver and diabetes but does not alleviate both diseases at once.

11 Aug 2007

The skeleton is an endocrine organ

Bones are typically thought of as calcified, inert structures, but researchers at Columbia University Medical Center have now identified a surprising and critically important novel function of the skeleton.

11 Aug 2007

New pathway for inflammation-induced cancer

A well-known inflammatory protein spawns an enzyme that inactivates two tumor-suppressing genes, ultimately triggering production of new blood vessels to nourish breast cancer cells, researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center report in the August edition of the journal Cell .

11 Aug 2007

Estrogen deficiency may trigger the development of high blood pressure and obesity in aged females

At menopause, women lose hormone protection against heart (cardiovascular) and kidney (renal) diseases, and are likely to become obese. A research team has tested the idea that estrogen deficiency in aged females may trigger the development of high blood pressure and obesity.

9 Aug 2007

Obesity linked to hyperparathyroidism in chronic kidney disease

For patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD), the risk of elevated levels of parathyroid hormone (PTH), or hyperparathyroidism a significant complication that increases the risk of cardiovascular problems and death increases along with body weight, reports a study in the September Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

9 Aug 2007

Diet foods and drinks for children may lead to obesity

Diet foods and drinks for children may inadvertently lead to overeating and obesity, says a new report from the University of Alberta.

9 Aug 2007

Steep rises in cancers linked to excessive sun exposure, alcohol, smoking and obesity

Rates of melanoma, the most dangerous form of skin cancer, have risen by over 40 per cent in the past decade, making it the fastest rising cancer in the UK. Incidence of mouth, womb, and kidney cancers has also shown rapid increases in the last 10 years.

8 Aug 2007