Does your stomach take on the form of a muffin? Source: Wikipedia commons
Everyone hates having a muffin top. Any words associated with fat can grasp great attention easily nowadays. The topic of body image has been the centre of attention in the society for some time now, whether among the entertainment industry or the science community. People are constantly trying out new diets to lose excess fat while others engage in intense workouts. Scientists are consistently carrying out experiments to develop medicine and to find ways to help people obtain slimmer, ideal bodies. For those of you who ponder about why it is almost impossible for you to make that abdominal fat vanish even with the help of workouts, you will soon understand why.
The amount of abdominal fat is measured as the ratio of waist circumference to hip circumference (WHR). Having a surplus of fat does not necessarily mean being overweight, however, it may lead to obesity, cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes and cancer, which can all have drastic effects on one’s life.
Exercises can help most individuals get rid of the excess fat located around the abdominal, although, the case is less fortunate for some. Here is why: epidemiologist Dr. Kira Taylor from the University of Louisville School of Public Health and Information Sciences and her team discovered genes encoded with information that determines how much fat a person is to have. They estimated that these genes’ contribution to excess abdominal fat can be from 30% to as much as 60%! Out of the newly discovered genes, three can influence the amount of fat on both men and women while two are associated with women only.
One of the biggest troublemakers of this problem is the gene named SHC1, previously known to participate in regulating cell alterations and cell death. Now, Dr. Taylor and the team unleashed new information on more of the gene’s functions, including its involvement with abdominal fat. A SHC1 variant
SHC1 Protein. Source: Wikipedia Commons
can cause alteration in 17 proteins responsible for obesity, therefore increasing fat tissue production around the abdominal area. The amount of fat produced is more than the needed amount for an individual. In other words, people who have this variant of SHC1 tend to have more excess abdominal fat than others naturally.
This is a remarkable discovery for the science community, especially pharmacologically, as it opens up a new pathway for experts in the field to develop medicines that target the responsible variant SHC1, inhibiting its functions, therefore bringing fat tissue production back down to normal. This also leads to the possibility of reducing risks of diseases associated with this problem. As for the rest of the society, including myself, struggling with losing excess abdominal fat, we can anticipate the arrival of a healthy-looking body in the future with the help of this discovery!
– Jena Yang
Other sources:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140122102538.htm
http://news.discovery.com/human/psychology/exercise-overpowers-influence-of-fat-genes-121811.htm
