Kids of obese parents develop insulin resistance at older ages, new study confirms.
A recent research conducted by the American Diabetes Association claims that kids of obese parents are more likely to develop obesity problems. Doctors have reached this conclusion after comparing the cells of fetuses in normal-weight mothers to those in obese moms.
The American Diabetes Association has always been interested in finding effective solutions against obesity problems. Since most of the hypotheses that have been put forth were made in relation to adults’ behavior scientists went on to investigate other possible leads.
They have thus, suggested that obesity problems may in fact surface at a younger age. Some children may be more likely to develop obesity problems due to their parents’ heritage. For that matter, the most recent research focused mainly on the link between children’s physical development and their parents’ medical condition.
The idea is not very new. Previous tests have also suggested that children who have obese parents are more likely to become fat themselves at an older age, but scientists could not specify to what extent was this fact true.
By comparing the cells withdrawn from fetuses in normal-weight women to the ones in overweight mothers, medical experts have confirmed their thesis. The withdrawn cells were chemically grown in the laboratory to determine the percentage of fat that they would take.
After several weeks, researchers have re-evaluated the lab cells. They have noticed that the percentage of fat tissue was 30 percent bigger in the artificial cells of overweight mothers than in those belonging to normal-weight moms.
While the data clearly indicates that children with obese parents are more likely to develop obesity problems, there are still many aspects that scientists will have to clarify. They were not capable of indicating the exact factors that cause the infants with obese moms to become fatter and insulin-resistant.
While the mother’s heritage may play a significant role in the child’s later development, some science professors at the University of Colorado think changes may also occur in the utero. Further studies will therefore pay closer attention to the development of fetuses in the utero. More specifically, researchers will compare the development of fetuses in overweight moms to the one of fetuses in normal-weight mothers.
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