The good news is that even if obesity runs in your family and you are genetically predisposed to overweight, you are not condemned to a lifetime of flab. For a long time the general assumption has been that a large percentage of people who suffer from obesity are genetically programmed with the problem and have little chance of overcoming their genes. This is not necessarily true, according to a new study led by Ruth Loos of the Medical Research Council.
Researchers in this study took DNA samples from more than 20,000 subjects, both men and women, between the ages of 39 and 79. They looked for twelve distinct genetic markers that are known to increase a person’s risk of obesity by increasing their body mass index (BMI). From the DNA samples they were able to calculate each person’s “genetic predisposition score”.
Then each subject was asked to supply specific information about his or her level of physical activity both at work and in general lifestyle at home. When all this data was correlated, it turned out that a simple matter of daily exercise could reduce body mass and related obesity by at least 40 percent.
The Cambridge study, published in the medical journal Plos Medicine, concluded that persons with high BMI scores (the ones most subject to obesity) could benefit significantly from even moderate daily exercise such as gardening and walking.
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