Hosts: Mignon Fogarty and Adam Lowe
Transcript: This episode originally aired December 27, 2005
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FULL TRANSCRIPT
THE THRIFTY GENE HYPOTEHSIS
Mignon: There's been a lot of news the last couple of weeks about obesity.
Adam: It certainly is an epidemic in the U.S. At least.
Mignon: They've found when they do research on mice, when mice are kept on dry kibble, they pretty much regulate their weight pretty well. But when they're put on a cafeteria diet, which is what we're exposed to – unlimited choice – mice balloon up just like we do. More
OBESITY IMPAIRS MEDICAL CARE
Mignon: One thing that has really come out in the last few weeks is that not only is obesity a problem for long term health, but it's also becoming a problem just for doctors trying to deliver medical treatment to patients. There are now so many overweight people that doctors are starting to have problems delivering just regular medical care. More
A BETTER WAY TO MEASURE OBESITY
Adam: So what are the different metrics and standards used to evaluate obesity these days? More
WHY BELLY FAT IS BAD
Mignon: One thing that is really fascinating is that the waist-to-hip ratio is also a very good indicator of the amount of abdominal fat. And what researchers have found just within the last 5 or 10 years is that fat in your abdomen – that abdominal, visceral fat – is different from the rest of the fat in your body. More
ARENA'S SEROTONIN RECEPTOR DRUG LOOKS PROMISING
Mignon: Well, there's also some interesting news on drug trials. For some people it's very hard to regulate their food intake, and so pharmaceutical companies of course are hard at work on that. It's a growing market. A company called Arena pharmaceuticals just had positive results from a phase IIb trial on a diet drug called APD356. More
CALORIE RESTRICTION, SIR2, RED WINE, AND LONGEVITY
Adam: Going from obesity to the other end of the spectrum, a lot of people are doing research and looking at caloric restriction as a way to increase longevity and health. And scientists are getting more of an understanding of how this is working. More
SUMMARY
Mignon: To sum up though, obesity is a growing problem in developed nations, and it's even impacting the medical care that patients receive. But researchers are finding out a lot about ways to help people diet, and just the damage that fat can do, but how to get rid of it as well. There's a lot of promise, and a lot of hope, but still at the end of the day it's still up to the individual to regulate their own food intake, and get the exercise they need. It's hard. It's a life-long battle for a lot of people.
Adam: And we certainly encourage anyone to be hopeful about new development, but that the most important thing is to start acting today if you do have a weight problem, and go talk to your physician, maybe a nutritionist, and just try to eat healthy foods in reasonable quantities, and start doing a lot of exercise.
Mignon: Right. The basics are still the same.
