January 30, 2019.
Part of the reason why you are thin and can stay that way is because of your genes. This is the conclusion of a recent English study.
Thin people gain weight less easily than others
A team of scientists from the University of Cambridge (Great Britain) sought to know why some people manage to stay slim while others gain weight easily. According to the results of their study, published in the journal PLOS Genetics, genetic factors come into play: certain genes are thought to be involved in thinness.
To come to this conclusion, researchers studied genotype data, that is to say the inheritance dependent on genes, of 1,622 healthy thin people, 1,985 cases of severe obesity in childhood and 10,433 people of normal weight. Their DNA was taken and they answered a questionnaire about their state of health as well as their lifestyle.
Obese people: ” The genetic dice play against them “
Dr. Inês Barroso, one of the study’s authors, explains: “ As we had anticipated, we found that obese people had a higher genetic risk score than people of normal weight, which contributes to their risk of being overweight. The genetic dice play against them “.
Conversely, “This research shows for the first time that thin and healthy people are generally thin because they have a lighter burden of genes that increase the risk of being overweight and not because these people are morally superior Explains Sadaf Farooqi, professor at the University of Cambridge and co-author of the study. However, more research is needed to identify the gene. influencing thinness: ” If we find these genes that keep them from gaining weight, we may be able to target them to develop new weight loss strategies and help people who do not have this advantage. “.
Aurélie Giraud
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