Your microbes might decide how much you weigh
Microbes—usually bacteria, fungi, or protists—made a big splash of news when the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy…
High-fat intake could trigger psychiatric disorders
High-fat diets have long been known to increase the risk for heart disease and stroke, but there is new evidence…
Obesity could be an evolutionary hangover from prehistoric gut bacteria
Today, obesity is considered to be undesirable, but in the past getting more fat and more energy from the diet…
Cars, TVs, triggering type-2 diabetes epidemic in developing world
Skyrocketing obesity and an epidemic of type-2 diabetes look likely for developing countries, as researchers at Simon Fraser University find…
Obesity can change our sense of taste
Previous studies have shown that obesity can lead to alterations in the brain, but in new research, scientists have found…
Medicos mull possible link between obesity and ADHD
A new University of Illinois study has established a possible link between high-fat diets and childhood cognitive conditions such as…
Car designs may change to protect obese
An analysis of traffic collision fatalities showing that obese drivers are far more likely to die than drivers of normal…
Viagra’s surprising weight-loss properties
German scientists investigating why mice given Viagra were resistant to obesity say they have discovered a “quite amazing” anti-obesity effect…
Parasitic worms could treat obesity disorders
On the list of unwelcome medical conditions, a parasitic worm infection ranks fairly high. But according to an international team…
MRI scans reveal fructose’s effects on brain’s appetite regulators
Scans of the human brain after ingesting fructose have provided insights into how the substance affects brain chemistry and increases…
Significant testosterone deficiency found in obese boys
For the first time, medicos have measured testosterone levels in teens of different weights and found that obese males aged…
Lack of sleep causing obesity epidemic?
Challenging the long-held notion that the main function of sleep is to give rest to the brain, researchers have found…
Hunter-gatherer study contradicts obesity theory
New findings published in the journal PLoS ONEsuggest that diet – rather than lack of exercise – may be the…
Diesel fumes causing waistlines to bulge?
Pregnant mice exposed to diesel exhaust pollution gave birth to offspring with a significantly higher rate of obesity and insulin…
Food and sex behaviors predicted with MRI
Previously used in experiments to see whether it could predict pop music success, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain…
Obesity and infertility linked across generations
The hormonal changes which are triggered by obesity can “program” the reproductive systems of the female offspring of obese women…
Low birth weight infants “programmed” for obesity
When mothers have poor or inadequate nutrition, their newborns are “programmed” to eat more because they develop less neurons in…
Vitamin D brouhaha gets heavy
While public health professionals continue to argue about whether current federal standards for vitamin D intake are too low, a…
Obesity to affect at least 42 percent of adults, say Harvard researchers
Mathematical models of social contagion suggest that America’s obesity epidemic won’t plateau until at least 42 percent of adults are…
Lighten up to get heavy
Exposure to light at night may lead to weight gain, even without changes in food intake and physical activity levels,…
Obesity linked to stupidity, brain scans show
A person’s risk of cardiovascular disease, type II diabetes and hypertension is known to be linked to obesity, and now…
Mothers’ exposure to insecticide linked to offspring obesity
Prenatal exposure to an insecticide commonly used up until the 1970s may play a role in the obesity epidemic in…
More evidence for obesity-infertility link
Obese women appear to undergo alterations in their ovaries which might be responsible for an egg’s inability to make an…
Birth defects linked to obesity during pregnancy
Women who are obese during pregnancy are putting their child at risk of birth defects such as spina bifida, heart…
Surprising finding from calorie-weight study
An international study has failed to find supporting evidence for the common belief that the number of calories burned in…
9 Out Of 10 Americans Obese Or Overweight By 2030
Most adults in the United States will be overweight or obese by 2030, with related health care costs hitting nearly…
Obesity Linked To Abnormal Sperm
Obese men should consider losing weight if they want to have children, British researchers say, after finding that men with…
Fat Cats, Diabetic Dogs Vex Veterinarians
Obesity isn’t only a problem for humans. The serious implications obesity has for heart disease, diabetes and other maladies are…