POPULATION INCREASES IN OBESITY APPEAR TO BE PARTLY DUE TO GENETICS

2004 ◽  
Vol 36 (5) ◽  
pp. 547-559 ◽  
Author(s):  
LEE ELLIS ◽  
DAN HAMAN

Studies have documented substantial increases in obesity throughout most of the industrialized world in recent decades. The majority of explanations for these increases have centred around environmental factors such as the increasing availability of high-fat, high-carbohydrate foods and sedentary lifestyles. This study sought to determine if genetic factors might be contributing to the increases in the proportions of North Americans who are obese and overweight. The body mass index (BMI) for a large sample of two generations of United States and Canadian subjects was correlated with family fertility indicators. Small but highly significant positive correlations were found between the BMIs of family members and their reproduction rates, especially in the case of women. For instance, mothers in the sample (most of whom were born in the 1940s and 50s) who were in the normal or below normal range had an average of 4·3 siblings and 3·2 children, compared with 4·8 siblings and 3·5 children for mothers who were overweight or obese. When combined with evidence from twin and adoption studies indicating that genes make substantial contributions to obesity, this study suggests that recent increases in obesity are partially the result of overweight and obese women having more children than is true for average and underweight women. It is speculated that improvements in medical treatments for conditions associated with obesity – particularly diabetes and heart disease – are making it possible for overweight women to live longer and to be more fertile than was true historically.

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Trude Jægtvik ◽  
Kari Kvigne ◽  
Per Kristian Roghell

A space where the body can emerge through various expressions. Reflections around a pilot study on overweight, women and belly dancingThis article is based on the implementation of, and reflections on the experiences from a pilot study in belly dancing for obese women, as well as interviews with participants in connection with the course. The study had a qualitative approach. The movements in belly dance invite into a concentration towards the body along with others. This started processes on several levels. Acknowledgment of vulnerability seemed to be a strength, and an important basis for the women’s development. Academic communities internationally call for new approaches and methods in relation to obesity. It is natural to look at the body and movement in relation to health. If we however are going to create a space where the body can emerge through different expressions, is it then necessary to focus on health? Can the term health block a new insight? Maybe we also should concentrate more on attention to the body and its expressions?


2014 ◽  
Vol 84 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 5-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eun Y. Jung ◽  
Sung C. Jun ◽  
Un J. Chang ◽  
Hyung J. Suh

Previously, we have found that the addition of L-ascorbic acid to chitosan enhanced the reduction in body weight gain in guinea pigs fed a high-fat diet. We hypothesized that the addition of L-ascorbic acid to chitosan would accelerate the reduction of body weight in humans, similar to the animal model. Overweight subjects administered chitosan with or without L-ascorbic acid for 8 weeks, were assigned to three groups: Control group (N = 26, placebo, vehicle only), Chito group (N = 27, 3 g/day chitosan), and Chito-vita group (N = 27, 3 g/day chitosan plus 2 g/day L-ascorbic acid). The body weights and body mass index (BMI) of the Chito and Chito-vita groups decreased significantly (p < 0.05) compared to the Control group. The BMI of the Chito-vita group decreased significantly compared to the Chito group (Chito: -1.0 kg/m2 vs. Chito-vita: -1.6 kg/m2, p < 0.05). The results showed that the chitosan enhanced reduction of body weight and BMI was accentuated by the addition of L-ascorbic acid. The fat mass, percentage body fat, body circumference, and skinfold thickness in the Chito and Chito-vita groups decreased more than the Control group; however, these parameters were not significantly different between the three groups. Chitosan combined with L-ascorbic acid may be useful for controlling body weight.


10.32947/357 ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-10

Thirty three infertile women were divided into two groups according to their BMI (21 obese and 12 overweight) there age ranges between (16-41) years, with their husbands twenty one infertile men and twelve fertile men and their ages range between (23-46) years. In the present study we observed that several indicators affect the fertility such as BMI in infertile obese women which was 34.65 kg/m2. That is higher than that of overweight infertile women that recorded 24.87 kg/m2. obese housewives scored the highest percentage (85.71%) compared with the overweight group (25%), In addition the obese age group between 30-41 years scored (66.67%) compared with the overweight group whose members’ age 16-29.9 years scored 75%. However, drinking cola (soft drink) percentage in obese infertile women was (85.71%) and the tea consumption was higher in overweight group (66.67%). The hormones FSH and LH decrease in obese women but serum prolactin hormone increased twice about 29.27 ng/ml in comparison with overweight group. Testosterone hormone decreased in obese women but Leptin in obese women (19.52 μg/L) was higher than that of overweight women (11.03 μg/L). Infertile unemployed men got the highest percentage of 66.67%. Besides, the smoker infertile men were higher in percentage (80.95%) compared with fertile men 41.67%. The elevated LH, FSH and prolactin values are significantly high (p<0.01) (7.895 mlU/ml, 9.89 mlU/ml and 13.33 ng/ml) respectively, but the testosterone was significantly low (3.91 ng/dl) in comparison with fertile men(21.76ng/dl). Whileleptin significantly increased in infertile men more than the fertile ones. These changes in hormones have a great correlation with semen characteristics as the abnormalities in sperms increased to (64.52) and the percentage of rapid, progressive and non -progressive motility decreased, but the immotile motility was highly significant (65.71) in infertile men. As a result this indicates that the reason of infertility is shared between the wife and husband.


Author(s):  
Zakirova J.S. ◽  
Nadirbekova R.A. ◽  
Zholdoshev S.T.

The article analyze the long-term morbidity, spread of typhoid fever in the southern regions of the Kyrgyz republic, and remains a permanent epidemic focus in the Jalal-Abad region, where against the low availability of the population to high-quality drinking water, an additional factor on the body for more than two generations and radiation factor, which we confirmed by the spread among the inhabitants of Mailuu-Suu of nosological forms of the syndrome of immunological deficiency, as a predictor of risk groups for infectious diseases, including typhoid fever.


2017 ◽  
Vol 232 (2) ◽  
pp. 155-164 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hong-Hui Wang ◽  
Qian Cui ◽  
Teng Zhang ◽  
Lei Guo ◽  
Ming-Zhe Dong ◽  
...  

As a fat storage organ, adipose tissue is distributed widely all over the body and is important for energy supply, body temperature maintenance, organ protection, immune regulation and so on. In humans, both underweight and overweight women find it hard to become pregnant, which suggests that appropriate fat storage can guarantee the female reproductive capacity. In fact, a large mass of adipose tissue distributes around the reproductive system both in the male and female. However, the functions of ovary fat pad (the nearest adipose tissue to ovary) are not known. In our study, we found that the ovary fat pad-removed female mice showed decreased fertility and less ovulated mature eggs. We further identified that only a small proportion of follicles developed to antral follicle, and many follicles were blocked at the secondary follicle stage. The overall secretion levels of estrogen and FSH were lower in the whole estrus cycle (especially at proestrus); however, the LH level was higher in ovary fat pad-removed mice than that in control groups. Moreover, the estrus cycle of ovary fat pad-removed mice showed significant disorder. Besides, the expression of FSH receptor decreased, but the LH receptor increased in ovary fat pad-removed mice. These results suggest that ovary fat pad is important for mouse reproduction.


2018 ◽  
Vol 132 (2) ◽  
pp. 295-312 ◽  
Author(s):  
Redin A. Spann ◽  
William J. Lawson ◽  
Gene L. Bidwell ◽  
C. Austin Zamarripa ◽  
Rodrigo O. Maranon ◽  
...  

Bariatric surgery is increasingly employed to improve fertility and reduce obesity-related co-morbidities in obese women. Surgical weight loss not only improves the chance of conception but reduces the risk of pregnancy complications including pre-eclampsia, gestational diabetes, and macrosomia. However, bariatric procedures increase the incidence of intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), fetal demise, thromboembolism, and other gestational disorders. Using our rodent model of vertical sleeve gastrectomy (VSG), we tested the hypothesis that VSG in diet-induced, obese dams would cause immune and placental structural abnormalities that may be responsible for fetal demise during pregnancy. VSG dams studied on gestational day (G) 19 had reduced circulating T-cell (CD3+ and CD8+) populations compared with lean or obese controls. Further, local interleukin (IL) 1β and IL 1 receptor antagonist (il1rn) cmRNA were increased in placenta of VSG dams. Placental barrier function was also affected, with increased transplacental permeability to small molecules, increased matrix metalloproteinase 9 expression, and increased apoptosis in VSG. Furthermore, we identified increased placental mTOR signaling that may contribute to preserving the body weight of the fetuses during gestation. These changes occurred in the absence of a macronutrient deficit or gestational hypertension in the VSG dams. In summary, previous VSG in dams may contribute to fetal demise by affecting maternal immune system activity and compromise placental integrity.


2015 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 930-942 ◽  
Author(s):  
Priscila Maximino ◽  
Paula Martins Horta ◽  
Luana Caroline dos Santos ◽  
Cecília Lacroix de Oliveira ◽  
Mauro Fisberg

ABSTRACT: Objective: To examine relations between fatty acids intake and metabolic syndrome (MetS) status among overweight and obese women (n = 223). Methods: This was a cross-sectional study. The physical and laboratory tests included anthropometry, body composition evaluation and measurements of blood pressure, fasting blood glucose, insulinemia and lipid profiles. A three-day food diary was used to evaluate fatty acids consumption. Statistical analysis included χ2 test and odds ratio measurements. Results: The women had 35.2 (6.9) years old and 15.2% presented MetS. Women with MetS presented higher serum levels of very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, glucose and insulin in addition to higher diastolic blood pressure in comparison to women without MetS. Overweight women with MetS consumed higher amounts of monounsaturated fatty acids - 24.3 g (24.7 - 36.4) versus overweight women without MetS - 23.9 g (23.8 - 26.8), polyunsaturated fatty acids - 16.7 g (14.6 - 21.1) versus overweight women without MetS - 13.6 g (13.8 - 15.8) and linoleic fatty acids - 15.9 g (6.5) versus overweight women without MetS - 13.1 g (5.1). Among obese women with MetS, higher intake of linoleic fatty acids was also noted - 17.6 g (6.1) versus obese women without MetS - 14.3 g (6.6) in addition to higher consumption of trans fatty acids - 4.7 g (4.8 - 6.3) versus obese women without MetS - 3.9 g (2.9 - 4.6). Increased quartiles of monounsaturated, polyunsaturated, linoleic and trans fatty acid intake were significantly associated with a greater occurrence of MetS. Conclusion: Lipid intake may be related to MetS, although other factors also need to be considered, such as lifestyle, genetics and metabolism.


2011 ◽  
Vol 279 (1732) ◽  
pp. 1287-1292 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roi Holzman ◽  
David C. Collar ◽  
Samantha A. Price ◽  
C. Darrin Hulsey ◽  
Robert C. Thomson ◽  
...  

Morphological diversification does not proceed evenly across the organism. Some body parts tend to evolve at higher rates than others, and these rate biases are often attributed to sexual and natural selection or to genetic constraints. We hypothesized that variation in the rates of morphological evolution among body parts could also be related to the performance consequences of the functional systems that make up the body. Specifically, we tested the widely held expectation that the rate of evolution for a trait is negatively correlated with the strength of biomechanical trade-offs to which it is exposed. We quantified the magnitude of trade-offs acting on the morphological components of three feeding-related functional systems in four radiations of teleost fishes. After accounting for differences in the rates of morphological evolution between radiations, we found that traits that contribute more to performance trade-offs tend to evolve more rapidly, contrary to the prediction. While ecological and genetic factors are known to have strong effects on rates of phenotypic evolution, this study highlights the role of the biomechanical architecture of functional systems in biasing the rates and direction of trait evolution.


1950 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 110-122 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. E. NEWELL

1. A short review is given of the coelom and of its morphological relations in the earthworm. 2. The arrangement of the intrinsic muscles in a typical septum is described. Four main sets of muscles are recognized: viz. radial muscles, circular muscles, oblique muscles, and the sphincter around the ventral foramen. 3. It is suggested that the function of the radial, circular and possibly of the oblique muscles is to control bulging of the septa, and so serve to localize differences in pressure in the coelomic fluid. Normally, in active worms, the sphincter of the ventral foramen is contracted and forms an effective barrier to the passage of fluid from one coelomic compartment to the next. This was verified experimentally and by X-ray photography. 4. A series of measurements of the pressure in the coelomic fluid in different regions of active worms was recorded by means of a capillary manometer and by the use of a spoon-gauge apparatus. Manometric measurements showed the average pressure in the anterior third of the body to be 16.0 cm. water and in the tail region to be 8.0 cm. water. The corresponding figures obtained with a spoon gauge were 13.5 and 8.5 cm. water. The pressure in narcotized worms is zero. 5. These results are discussed, and it is pointed out that the manometer readings suffer from the disadvantage of failing to show the rapid fluctuations in pressure which occur during wriggling movements of the worms. 6. It is calculated from these pressure readings that a worm can exert a forward thrust equivalent to forces of between 1.5 and 8.0 g. These figures agree well with those obtained by Gray & Lissman by the use of a special torsion balance. 7. The burrowing movements of earthworms are briefly described. 8. It is shown that the sphincters of the dorsal pores and of the nephridiopores do not normally allow of the escape of coelomic fluid, and will withstand a pressure well outside the normal range.


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