Obesity News and Research

Latest Obesity News and Research

Simple biological age score flags higher cognitive decline risk in older adults

A study of 4,818 middle-aged and older Chinese adults found that higher light BioAge was associated with greater risks of cognitive impairment, episodic memory decline, and reduced mental intactness. The simple measure, based on age, creatinine, glucose, and CRP, added modest predictive information but requires further validation before clinical use.

10 Aug 2026

Metabolic stress triggers long-lasting immune system changes in diabetes patients

A growing understanding of trained immunity, a form of long-lasting immune system adaptation, is reshaping how scientists view diabetes and its many complications.

7 Aug 2026

Nighttime light linked to conflicting signs of biological aging

Higher residential nighttime light exposure was associated with contrasting biological aging patterns in nearly 300,000 UK Biobank participants, depending on the aging algorithm used. PhenoAge and homeostatic dysregulation suggested a potentially adverse aging pattern, while KDM-BA showed the opposite association, underscoring uncertainty about how nighttime light relates to biological aging.

6 Aug 2026

New review links obesity with accelerated biological aging mechanisms

The global rise in obesity and population aging represents a major public health challenge, with growing evidence suggesting that excess body fat not only increases the risk of chronic disease but may also accelerate the biological aging process.

6 Aug 2026

Swiss flagship project harnesses AI and sensors for diabetes prevention

Type 2 diabetes generates high healthcare costs in Switzerland and causes significant suffering for those affected.

6 Aug 2026

Night shifts and chronic insomnia may increase long COVID risk

The first evidence that night work and chronic insomnia may increase the risk of developing long COVID comes from a new study led by ISGlobal, a centre supported by "la Caixa" Foundation, in collaboration with the Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), through the GCAT | Genomes for Life cohort.

6 Aug 2026

New research highlights hidden metabolic risks in non-obese HIV patients

A new UC San Francisco study helps explain why people with HIV remain at elevated risk for type 2 diabetes despite effective suppression of the virus with modern medications.

6 Aug 2026

AI tool aims to accelerate Alzheimer's treatment through faster referrals

Vanderbilt Health researchers have received a grant from Eli Lilly and Company, a multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in Indianapolis, to build an artificial intelligence (AI) tool within the electronic health record system (EHR) to get patients with Alzheimer's disease to treatment faster.

5 Aug 2026

Mouse study shows how liraglutide briefly rewires gut bacterial communities

Researchers treated male high-fat-fed mice with liraglutide for 14 days, then tracked fecal bacterial communities after a 7-day washout using 16S rRNA sequencing. Liraglutide shifted the microbiome toward Lactobacillus- and Leptogranulimonas-related taxa while reducing several fermentative taxa, but most changes moved back toward baseline after treatment stopped.

4 Aug 2026

NIH funds smartphone platform to improve driving safety for teens

Dr. Jeffrey Keller, Hibernia National Bank/Edward G. Schleider Endowed Chair at LSU's Pennington Biomedical Research Center, and Sara Seifert, president of Minnesota HealthSolutions, have received a new National Institutes of Health Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) award to develop an innovative digital health platform that will help parents support teenagers with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) as they learn to drive.

4 Aug 2026

$GLP-1 therapy may help reduce fracture risk among adults with type 2 diabetes$

GLP-1 therapy may help reduce fracture risk among adults with type 2 diabetes

New research by UCLA Health found GLP-1 medications may reduce the risk of serious fractures for adults with type 2 diabetes.

4 Aug 2026

Tadalafil may increase glaucoma risk in men with enlarged prostates

An erectile dysfunction drug that is also used to treat symptoms like sudden urgency and frequency, which are associated with an enlarged prostate in men, may heighten the risk of the serious eye condition, glaucoma, finds a large comparative study published online in the British Journal of Ophthalmology.

4 Aug 2026

Exercise helps protect Hispanic adults from late life cognitive decline

Previous studies have examined the associations between adherence to LS7 and cognitive outcomes, with findings suggesting that higher LS7 scores are associated with better cognitive performance, reduced dementia risk and improved brain health.

4 Aug 2026

High childhood body mass index linked to adult childlessness

A study of almost 61,000 women in Denmark, published in the journal JAMA Network Open, finds that women who had an overweight or obesity body mass index (BMI) trajectory during childhood were less likely to have children than women with a normal (average) BMI trajectory, and this effect on childlessness was already apparent in their mid-20s.

4 Aug 2026

Insilico Medicine highlights AI-powered biological target discovery for rare sinonasal cancer

Insilico Medicine ("Insilico"), a clinical-stage generative artificial intelligence (AI)-driven biotechnology company, today announced the publication of a collaborative study in the journal npj Precision Oncology.

4 Aug 2026

Researchers suggest a potential therapeutic strategy for muscle loss associated with obesity

Obesity has been linked to skeletal muscle loss and deterioration. While M2 macrophages may play a role in regulating muscle function, the underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood.

4 Aug 2026

Food may taste different on GLP-1 drugs, but taste may not be the reason

The review suggests that patient-reported “taste changes” during GLP-1RA treatment may reflect reduced food enjoyment and motivation rather than consistent impairment of basic taste. The authors propose a sensory-liking-wanting framework while emphasizing that current human evidence remains heterogeneous and largely indirect.

4 Aug 2026

Restricting select amino acids may mimic protein restriction’s healthy aging benefits

A review finds that restricting protein, particularly methionine, isoleucine, and valine, may improve metabolism and influence key aging pathways, largely in experimental models. Short human studies suggest metabolic benefits, but effects on lifespan remain unknown and restriction may harm people with unmet or increased protein needs.

3 Aug 2026

Gestational diabetes cases surge across England, raising health concerns

One in eight mothers in England is now diagnosed with gestational diabetes, with diagnoses rising by 60 per cent in just five years, according to a major study.

3 Aug 2026

First consensus guidelines outline GLP-1 medication use during pregnancy

As the use of GLP-1 and other incretin-based medications for obesity continues to grow worldwide, researchers at Marshall University have contributed to an international effort to address one of medicine's most pressing unanswered questions: How should these medications be used by women before, during and after pregnancy?

3 Aug 2026