"Another path that leads to obesity"

The BBC this morning published online an article based on US researchers finding yet another way in which obesity can be accomplished.


Apparently "having a poor diet can trigger a signalling system which prompts the body to consume even more." (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7649261.stm) So basically eating unheathy makes you fat. Did society not establish that quite a few centuries ago? It seems to be that 'new findings' and 'new research,' with regards to obesity, always melt down to this same conclusion, and it's one I think I was taught in primary school.

This time however its all about the hypothalamus; a structure in the brain responsible for maintaining a constant and steady bodily state. According to Dongsheng Cai, assistant professor of physiology at the UW School of Medicine and Public Health, the cell-signalling pathway, known to be associsted with inflammation, has now been found to also influence the regulation of food intake.

Stimulating this pathway in mice led to an increase in their energy consumption, while suppressing the pathway encouraged them to maintain normal food intake, consequently regulating body weight.

Metabolic inflammation it seems is the big picture behind this particular research and a picture I can actually understand. Metabolic inflammation is caused by too much energy consumption and although less severe than other forms of inflammatory response - "it causes cellular dysfunction, which can decrease the regulation of several physiological processes, including metabolism.” (Breakthrough Digest Medical News Association.com)

The question is however, what does obesity look like in the North West of England?