Metabolic Sydrome Triggered by Overeating, not Obesity

[mertie]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/hsn/20080419/hl_hs...uLdW785HqZa24cA

 

FRIDAY, April 18 (HealthDay News) -- Overeating, not the obesity it causes, is the actual cause of metabolic syndrome, suggests a study with mice by researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas.

 

 

 

Metabolic syndrome is a collection of health factors that increase the risk of developing insulin resistance, fatty liver, heart disease and type 2 diabetes.

 

 

 

This study was among the first to propose that weight gain is an early symptom, not a direct cause, of metabolic syndrome, the researchers said.

 

 

 

"Most people today think that obesity itself causes metabolic syndrome," senior author Dr. Roger Unger, professor of internal medicine, said in a prepared statement. "We're ingrained to think obesity is the cause of all health problems, when, in fact, it is the spillover of fat into organs other than fat cells that damages these organs, such as the heart and the liver. Depositing fatty molecules in fat cells where they belong actually delays that harmful spillover."

 

 

 

In this study, Under and his colleagues compared normal mice to mice that were genetically altered to prevent their fat cells from expanding. Both groups of mice were overfed.

 

 

 

The normal mice got fat but didn't develop signs of metabolic syndrome until after about seven weeks of overeating. The genetically altered mice stayed slim but became seriously ill within a few weeks and displayed evidence of severe heart problems and major increases in blood sugar levels eight weeks before minimal heart problems developed in the normal mice, the researchers said.

 

 

 

The genetically altered mice showed significant damage to heart cells and to the insulin-secreting cells in the pancreas. They also got sick quicker, because the extra calories they consumed weren't stored in fat cells, but rather in other tissues, the researchers said.

 

 

 

The study was published online in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

 

 

 

The exact cause of metabolic syndrome, which affects about 50 million Americans, is unknown, but lack of exercise and obesity have been tagged as the primary underlying contributors to the development of the condition, according to background information in the study.

 

 

 

More information

 

 

 

The U.S. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute has more about metabolic syndrome.

[trs]

I can go along with altered genes but, I still don't think it is even related to overeating. Metabolic syndrome was my first dx and back then it wasn't from over eating or underexercising. I was gaining weight not matter how little I eat or how much I exercised. I think it is a problem with the genes. Hope more research is done on it.

[ADDflower]

Maybe we should just not have ourselves genetically altered to stay slim.

 

sometimes these studies make no sense to me.

[PatHidy]

I also do not agree with the study. Why don't they test people, not RATS? I would gladly sign up to be part of a test to monitor what happens when I overeat or when I undereat. (I know what happens but nobody believes me.) On 600 calories a day I gain. On 1000--1200 I fluctuate, at 1500-2000 I have maintained 175 (give or take 5) for 0ver 30 years. Some days I overeat, other days I undereat. Not intentional, it's a taste and/or availability thing. And my cravings seem to control what I eat. Except I have to really supress the sugar cravings.

[mertie]

Oh Ami, that's hilarious!

 

Thanks for making me laugh out loud!!!!!!

[MCF]

Most mouse studies end up not applying to humans at all.

 

I think hormones trigger overeating and metabolic syndrome, not the other way around.

[mertie]

I bet we could come up with a couple of abnormal people!

[judycolby]

I could volunteer some, how many do you want?

Judy

[staticnrg]

Hi, Mary! Good find!!!! If I am reading this right ("This study was among the first to propose that weight gain is an early symptom, not a direct cause, of metabolic syndrome, the researchers said.") and the rest of the article, it is saying that obesity/weight gain is DUE TO the metabolic syndrome. In the past, they thought the obesity/weight gain CAUSED the metabolic syndrome. Did I misread it? Even if I did or didn't, we all know that metabolic syndrome is often really Cushing's or other endocrine malfunctions due to an endocrine tumor. This study (click me) talks about that link.

 

Another study that I posted on this thread (click here) says, when talking about Cushing's Syndrome and it's symptoms:

 

"Unfortunately, this type of weight gain is very common and may be indistinguishable from those patients who have the metabolic syndrome"

 

Sadly, as we know, too often PCOS and metabolic syndrome are diagnosed when the real culprit is Cushing's.

 

XOOXOXOX

Robin

[ADDflower]

The way I read this article... I don't look at any of the others yet... it is saying that overeating (something that can be "controlled" by the person) is what is causing metabolic syndrome. So... if you get metabolic syndrome it's your own fault for over-eating.

 

They are saying that the reason that the genetically altered mice got sicker faster is that they were incapable of storing weight in fat cells. This points to becoming fat as the body's defense AGAINST metabolic syndrome. However as the mouse continues to gain weight eventually the additional fat spills into organs such as the liver and heart causing problems.

 

It clearly states the mice were over-fed. IF someone would just teach the mice portion control and see to it that they had proper exercise they wouldn't get metabolic syndrome. I don't like where this is going.... it points to blaming the poor mice!!! It's not their fault they were born in a lab.

 

But seriously... if you're talking about food problems... I mean, if you're addicted to a drug or alcohol you can just stop those things. But you can't stop eating, not practically. I see this really scary future when people who fail gastic-bypass surgery or lap band surgery will start getting feeding tubes implanted so they don't have to eat anymore. *shakes head*

[staticnrg]

Ami, you are right. I had to go back and re-read. Actually, the writer here needs some help. I found some other sites with the same news story and it seemed more clear.

 

Those articles above that I posted are even more pertinent. What really bothers me is that folks go doing this research but don't bother putting together ALL the research to see what really is happening.

 

Sigh....

 

Hugs!

Robin

[MCF]

But folks with metabolic syndrome usually can't control eating very well. One of the things that used to be so dramatic on the low carb newsgroup in its heyday were all the folks over three and four hundred lbs who were ecstatic because Atkins induction was the first time in their lives their appetites were controlled, often to the point that they were having trouble eating enough calories.

 

I, OTOH, had appetite reduction and was able to maintain my weight on 50% more calories than on low fat, high carb, but I was still hungry. In fact, Atkins induction knocked down my T3 so much that I lapsed into a suicidal depression til I got some Cytomel.

 

Cortisol makes people hungry, bg swings and hyperinsulinemia make people hungry, ghrelin, leptin, etc. all control eating, we don't, for the most part.

 

Here's an interesting study:

 

1: Pediatrics 1999 Mar;103(3):E26 Related Articles, Books, LinkOut

 

High glycemic index foods, overeating, and obesity.

 

Ludwig DS, Majzoub JA, Al-Zahrani A, Dallal GE, Blanco I, Roberts SB.

 

Division of Endocrinology, Department of Medicine, Children's Hospital,Boston, 300 Longwood Ave, Boston, MA 02115, USA.

 

OBJECTIVE: The prevalence of obesity has increased dramatically in recent years. However, the role of dietary composition in body weight regulation remains unclear. The purpose of this work was to investigate the acute effects of dietary glycemic index (GI) on energy metabolism and voluntary food intake in obese subjects. METHODS: Twelve obese teenage boys were evaluated on three separate occasions using a crossover study protocol. During each evaluation, subjects consumed identical test meals at breakfast and lunch that had a low, medium, or high GI. The high- and medium-GI meals were designed to have similar macronutrient composition, fiber content, and palatability, and all meals for each subject had equal energy content. After breakfast, plasma and serum concentrations of metabolic fuels and hormones were measured. Ad libitum food intake was determined in the 5-hour period after lunch. RESULTS: Voluntary energy intake after the high-GI meal (5.8 megajoule [mJ]) was 53% greater than after the medium-GI meal (3.8 mJ), and 81% greater than after the low-GI meal (3.2 mJ). In addition, compared with the low-GI meal, the high-GI meal resulted in higher serum insulin levels, lower plasma glucagon levels, lower postabsorptive plasma glucose and serum fatty acids levels, and elevation in plasma epinephrine. The area under the glycemic response curve for each test meal accounted for 53% of the variance in food intake within subjects. CONCLUSIONS: The rapid absorption of glucose after consumption of high-GI meals induces a sequence of hormonal and metabolic changes that promote excessive food intake in obese subjects. Additional studies are needed to examine the relationship between dietary GI and long-term body weight regulation.

 

Publication Types:

Clinical Trial

Controlled Clinical Trial

PMID: 10049982 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

[casag]

Why is it always OUR fault???

 

[hockeygirl]

I barely eat at all and somehow I seem to keep gaining weight, can they explain that one?????? Oh yeah, must be the tumor in my head... the one that I'm not imagining. The one that we know is there because we've actually seen him. They tried to tell me I had that metabolic syndrome or whatever it is. I barely eat anything. About three bites and I'm full. Sure I'm overeating. Whatever.

[MCF]

I maintained overweight on 800 scrupulously documented, weighed and measured calories per day when all this metabolic stuff started 10 years ago and I was on a very low fat, high carb diet. Switching to low carb allowed me to maintain on 1200 calories per day, which is still below the 1500 calories per day that women on calorie restricted diets for longevity eat!

 

P.S. In my post above, I meant to say that I did NOT have the appetite suppression that most folks on low carb or ketogenic diets experience. I'm sure that was due to cortisol levels.