Research led by Dr. Rachel Batterham found that the gene — which affects one in every six people — caused people with a specific variation to maintain higher levels of ghrelin, a hunger-stimulating hormone, throughout their system. In those subjects without the gene variation, ghrelin levels reduced after a meal. But for those with the gene variant, ghrelin levels stayed high even after eating, keeping them feeling hungry. Plus, the variant increased their appetite for fatty foods.
People with the obesity-prone FTO variation "are biologically programmed to eat more," Batterham said. "It’s a double hit."
The study involved 359 healthy male volunteers.
But the good news is that ghrelin levels can be suppressed, the researchers said. "Ghrelin (and therefore hunger) can be reduced by exercise like running and cycling, or by eating a high-protein diet," Batterham said. In addition, drugs to suppress the hormone are already in development, she added.
Findings were published July 15 in The Journal of Clinical Investigation.
Access: http://www.jci.org/articles/view/44403#SEC3
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