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Study
Confirms Obesity Is in the Genes
NEW
YORK (Reuters Health) - New study findings confirm what many would
believe to be common sense--that overweight parents are more likely
to have overweight children.
The idea that
body composition--the distribution of fat and muscle within the
body--is a trait genetically passed on to children from their
parents is not new, but for the first time researchers have confirmed
previous findings by using an instrument called a dual energy
x-ray absorptiometry (DXA). The investigators report their results
in the October issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
``This study
used a DXA scan to determine the composition of the body. Previous
studies had relied on weight and height measures only,'' lead
author Dr. Margarita S. Treuth of Johns Hopkins University in
Baltimore, Maryland, said in an interview with Reuters Health.
``In addition,
young girls and their parents were studied, whereas other studies
have examined this in adult offspring,'' she added.
In the study,
101 normal-weight girls between the ages of 8 and 9 and their
biological parents participated in a battery of body measurements.
The researchers measured body fat, body composition, levels of
potassium and body mass index (BMI), a measure of weight in relation
to height that is used to assess obesity in adults.
In general,
the investigators found that the girls' body fat composition,
as measured by DXA, was similar to that of their parents. Girls
with overweight parents tended to be on the heavier side of normal
body weight for their age, while girls with leaner parents were
more likely to be on the lighter side of normal, Treuth explained.
The findings
point to heredity as a factor that contributes to a person's body
composition, she noted.
``Now we know
(which children) need to be targets for intervention,'' Treuth
told Reuters Health.
``Treatment
and prevention of obesity may need to be targeted to children
of overweight or obese parents in particular, since they will
be at higher risk of related complications of obesity,'' she concluded.
SOURCE:
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2001;74:529-533.
Reference
Source 89
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