Common Cold Could Be Responsible for Some Childhood Obesity
US kids are getting heavier and heavier. Some experts blame parents for allowing children to eat unhealthy foods, such as fat and sugar, and not encouraging effective exercise. Other experts aren’t so sure that parents are entirely to blame.
New research reveals that a common virus could be responsible for the childhood obesity epidemic that is sweeping through the US. Scientists at the University of California in San Diego determined that obese kids were more likely to have antibodies related to adenovirus 36 than children of normal weight.
Children who are infected with the adenovirus, which typically causes colds and eye infections, were found to weight an average of fifty pounds more than children who did not test positive for adenovirus antibodies. This groundbreaking study could help researchers develop more effective strategies for dealing with childhood obesity.
It’s likely that most children in the US are infected with adenoviruses at some point in their childhood, whether they are aware of it or not. Adenoviruses typically present as common colds, sore throats and intestinal disruptions.
Studies have shown that the virus may change cells within the body, causing weight gain. Adenovirus 36 is able to enter fat cell precursors and modify the chemistry to increase fat cell production. Other studies indicate that the virus is actually able to change the fat cells themselves, increasing the amount of fat that the cells are able to store. Further, animals injected with adenovirus 36 tend to gain a significant amount of weight.
Dr. Jeffrey Schwimmer, director of Weight and Wellness at Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego, led a team of researchers who examined 125 kids, half obese and half normal weight, between the ages of eight and eighteen for the presence of adenovirus 36 antibodies. The adenovirus antibodies were discovered in four times more obese children than normal weight children. In addition, obese children with the antibodies weighed thirty-five more pounds than obese children without the antibodies.
Although this new research provides a credible explanation for some obesity in US children, Schwimmer acknowledges that weight gain in children is not a simple problem; there are some children who eat unhealthy foods yet maintain a normal weight. He also readily admits that some children simply eat too much without a corresponding amount of exercise to burn off the calories. However, Schwimmer has also observed unexplained rapid weight gain in children with no discernable problems with diet and exercise. These atypically obese children are whom Schwimmer suspects to be suffering from adenovirus 36 infection.
If further research reveals that adenovirus 36 does, in fact, cause children to gain weight, it could be possible to develop a vaccine to help prevent virus-related obesity. Further, even if a vaccine could not be developed, if the AD36 antibody test were made available to the general public, parents of children in the high-risk group could take steps to help children understand and combat their illness. Until then, however, doctors recommend that parents continue to teach all children proper eating habits and help them develop an effective exercise regimen.
Critics of the study argue that the research could just as easily indicate that obese children are more likely than normal weight children to catch adenovirus 36.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39235187/ns/health-kids_and_parenting
