Genetic Predisposition to Type 2 Diabetes Promotes Weight Gain

Researchers at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research in Sydney, Australia, have found that healthy people who are genetically predisposed to develop type 2 diabetes are more likely to gain weight than their non-genetically-predisposed peers. Professor Lesley Campbell and colleagues recruited 17 healthy people with a family history of type 2 diabetes and 24 healthy people with no family history of the disease for their 28-day-long study. Each participant was asked to eat 1250 calories a day more than their individual energy requirement. Body weight, fat distribution, and blood insulin levels were measured at the start of the study, after 3 days, and at the end. Results showed that participants with a family history of diabetes gained over a kilogram more weight (3.4 kg as opposed to 2.2 kg) than participants with no family history. Participants with a family history also had higher circulating insulin levels 3 days into the study. “It’s already well-known that relatives of people with type 2 diabetes are more likely to develop it themselves,” said Professor Campbell. “We wanted to challenge these individuals with overfeeding while they were still young and healthy, without any metabolic impairments. Our study shows just how quickly the body reacts to overeating, and how harmful it can be in susceptible people. While we expected differences between the two groups, we were surprised by the amount of extra weight the diabetes-prone group gained.”