Obesity Risk Defined
at the Fetus Level
May 13, 2005
The growing obesity rate has led to
researchers' studies on the subject and different alternatives
towards a healthy weight loss.
Complementing the efforts, an article in The
Journal of Physiology has presented important
research showing that events before birth can permanently
change patterns of appetite and fat deposition in child
and adult life. The research has shown robust associations
between the prenatal experience and patterns for deposition
and appetite regulation in postnatal life.
According to researchers, this exercise has attempted
to answer the question - to what extent the fetus has
a functional capacity for regulating its appetite? It
has been the first to demonstrate that the fetus possesses
all the components of the appetite-regulating system
before birth, and that increases in nutritional supply
are able to regulate the expression of these components.
"The study raises the possibility that changes in the
fetal environment can permanently change the way that
this system develops and result in changes in feeding
behavior after the individual is born," the researchers
said.
With child and adult obesity currently at epidemic
proportions in both the developed and developing world,
this research offers new and important insights into
the causes of this complex disease.
Source: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com
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