Obesity News and Research

Latest Obesity News and Research

A specialized gut-brain circuit mediates sugar preference

A little extra sugar can make us crave just about anything, from cookies to condiments to coffee smothered in whipped cream. But its sweetness doesn't fully explain our desire. Instead, new research shows this magic molecule has a back channel to the brain.

16 Apr 2020

Review investigates stem cell therapy as potential new treatment for preeclampsia

Preeclampsia is the leading cause of death and disability, for both mothers and babies, killing approximately 76,000 mothers and 500,000 babies globally every year. Despite this, the only cure at present is to deliver the placenta and the baby, with the potential for long term complications.

16 Apr 2020

Discovery of specialized gut-brain circuit offers insight into sugar preference

Artificial sweeteners have never fully succeeded in impersonating sugar. Now, a Columbia study in mice has identified a brain mechanism that may explain why.

15 Apr 2020

COVID-19 and type 2 diabetes have shared disease pathways, study finds

Individuals with diabetes are at increased risk for bacterial, parasitic and viral infections. New research published in Endocrine Reviews, a journal of the Endocrine Society, illuminates how intersections of the coronavirus infection (COVID-19) and type 2 diabetes may require new approaches in treatment for hospitalized patients.

15 Apr 2020

A gut-to-brain circuit drives sugar preference and may explain sugar cravings

By visualizing brain activity when the rodents consumed sugar versus artificial sweetener or water, researchers have identified a brain region that responds solely to sugar: the caudal nucleus of the solitary tract (cNST).

15 Apr 2020

Active older veterans fall more often, but less likely to injure themselves

Active older veterans fall more often than their more sedentary peers who never served in the armed forces, but they're less likely to injure themselves when they do, says a University of Michigan researcher.

14 Apr 2020

Voluntary exercise could help prevent liver cancer, study shows

Liver cancer is the fourth most common cause of cancer death worldwide and is growing rapidly due to the "diabesity pandemic."

14 Apr 2020

OSU Superfund Research Program receives $12.7 million grant to assess toxicity of PAHs

An Oregon State University-led research program has been awarded a $12.7 million grant to serve the Pacific Northwest by studying harmful chemicals found at federally designated hazardous waste sites.

13 Apr 2020

Reprimo gene may play a role in menopause-related weight gain

A new study published in the journal Nature Metabolism in April 2020 indicates that some genes could allow women in menopause to remain healthy without hormone replacement therapy, which has been linked to a higher risk of heart disease and breast cancer.

13 Apr 2020

Women born by cesarean have greater risk of obesity and diabetes

A new study published in the open-access journal JAMA Network Open in April 2020 suggests that women born by way of a Cesarean section are at higher risk of developing obesity as well as type 2 diabetes mellitus in adult life.

13 Apr 2020

Newer therapies may benefit patients with type 2 diabetes and coronary artery disease

Type 2 diabetes affects treatment options for patients who have both coronary artery disease and T2D, according to a new American Heart Association Scientific Statement, published today in the Association's flagship journal Circulation.

13 Apr 2020

People with type 2 diabetes and heart disease may benefit from newer therapies

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) may affect treatment options for patients who have both coronary artery disease (CAD) and T2D.

13 Apr 2020

Researchers reveal novel player in obesity-related breast cancer

It is widely accepted that higher levels of body fat increase the risk of developing breast cancer, as well as other cancers.

13 Apr 2020

Risks and benefits of separating infants from COVID-19-positive mothers

In a new commentary, Alison Stuebe, MD, President of the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine, addresses the risks and benefits of separating infants from COVID-19-positive mothers following birth.

12 Apr 2020

$Study finds link between pre-school overweight and risk of bone fracture$

Study finds link between pre-school overweight and risk of bone fracture

Pre-school children who are overweight or obese have a higher risk of bone fractures during childhood than normal weight pre-schoolers, according to a study published in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research.

9 Apr 2020

Air pollution and PM2.5 raise risk of COVID-19 death

According to a new analysis, air pollution is associated with more deaths in the currently raging COVID-19 pandemic. A new American study from researchers at Department of Biostatistics, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, showed that a single unit increase in particle pollution levels in the air could raise the risk of death by 15 percent and that before this pandemic if the air was cleaner, it could have saved many lives.

8 Apr 2020

Risk of depression increases with higher weight, shows study

In an analysis of primary care records of 519,513 UK adults who were overweight or obese between 2000-2016 and followed up until 2019, the incidence of new cases of depression was 92 per 10,000 people per year. The risk of depression also rose with higher weight, according to the Obesity analysis.

8 Apr 2020

Researchers identify new biomarker to track the development of NAFLD

Fatty liver disease not associated with alcohol consumption, which is called Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease or NAFLD, affects more than one billion people worldwide.

7 Apr 2020

Brown fat cells can translate energy into heat in an unexpected way

When we are exposed to sufficient cold or exercise, small clusters of brown fat cells in our bodies begin to burn up energy.

6 Apr 2020

Do video games make children fatter?

A new study published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics in April 2020 reports that children who use video games for more extended periods before the age of 5 years may be slightly fatter by the age of 14 if they also drink sugary drinks and have irregular bedtimes.

6 Apr 2020