Obesity

A team at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center has published a paper detailing a mechanism that appears to regulate fat formation in mammals.

New research demonstrates how a high-fat diet can disrupt levels of an intestinal immune cell known to help regulate microbial populations in the gut. The study shows how low-levels of this molecule result in increased growth of harmful gut bacteria, leading to inflammation and insulin resistance.

A new study has discovered a mechanism explaining how obesity and high-fat diets can disrupt the appetite-suppressing signals from the brain and lead to overeating. The fascinating research revealed a hormone in the gut, triggered by high-fat meals, actually induces the body to keep eating.

A new slow-release hormone treatment is being touted as an alternative to gastric bypass surgery in obese patients suffering from type 2 diabetes. The novel therapy delivers three appetite-regulating hormones via a subcutaneous pump, resulting in weight loss and improved blood glucose levels.

Scientists from Taiwan are suggesting not all exercise is equal when it comes to those with a genetic propensity for obesity trying to lose weight. The study concluded jogging was better for weight loss than either swimming or cycling in those subjects with a genetic predisposition for obesity.

A new study has described how an impaired immune system can alter the composition of the gut microbiome resulting in metabolic disease and obesity. Demonstrated in mouse experiments the research suggests certain species of gut bacteria can prevent the gut from absorbing fat.

Does weight loss inherently result in the slowing down of a person’s metabolism? New research suggests we have evolved an anti-starvation mechanism that slows our metabolism and ironically is triggered by modern weight loss methods.

​Although coffee consumption does potentially pose some health risks, studies have also suggested that it may lower incidences of maladies such as prostate cancer, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and heart disease. Now, scientists believe that it could also help fight obesity.

What if you could stay healthier without changing your diet? In mouse tests researchers have now found a way to alter the fat metabolism in the liver, reducing the chances of diabetes without changing a high-fat diet.

Researchers have discovered diets composed of ultra-processed foods lead to overeating and weight gain when compared to diets composed of unprocessed foods. As both diets contained the same amounts of sugars and fats, it is unclear why the ultra-processed food engenders overeating and weight gain.

An intriguing study suggests there is a direct causative link between a high-fat diet and the development of depression. The research demonstrates how certain dietary fats can enter the brain, disrupt specific signaling pathways in the hypothalamus, and subsequently induce signs of depression.

Researchers are reporting mixed results from the first human trial investigating the effects of fecal transplantation in obese patients. Initial reports suggest the treatment failed to induce weight loss or changes in a key satiety hormone.