What is the link between obesity and genes?
Today marks World Obesity Day. Here is how genes can play a role in you becoming obese and what you can do to prevent it.
Obesity is a global problem with 800 million people around the world suffering from the condition.
Mayo Clinic defines obesity as "a complex disease involving an excessive amount of body fat".
Sadly, being obese also puts one at risk of contracting other health conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure and certain cancers.
There are several things that can contribute to one being obese, and genes are reportedly one of them.
"We inherit our genes from our parents, and it has been estimated that 40-70% of our chance of having obesity is due to our gene," reports World Obesity Day.
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"There have now been hundreds of genes identified which can contribute to the risk of obesity. Most of these genes by themselves have a small effect, but when combined can significantly increase the risk for obesity," states the website.
However, the good news is that there are things people can do to ensure that they don't become obese regardless of their genes.
"While our genes influence our risk for obesity; the impact of their contribution can be modified by environmental factors such as our lifestyle habits," states World Obesity Day on its website.
How to decrease risk of becoming obese
Eating unhealthy foods is one of the leading contributors to obesity.
Ultra-processed food is contributing to the rapid rise in obesity. Some examples of ultra-processed foods provided by the Heart and Stroke website include soft drinks, chips, chocolate, candy, ice-cream, sweetened breakfast cereals, packaged soups, chicken nuggets, hotdogs, fries and more.
Lack of exercise also puts one at risk of becoming obese. Physical activity or exercise has a lot of benefits and helps burn off calories.
Getting adequate sleep is one of the ways to help you maintain a good weight if coupled with eating right and exercising.
"A lack of sleep can disrupt hormones such as increased cortisol (a stress hormone linked to weight gain) and increased ghrelin (a hormone that stimulates appetite and cravings) and decreased leptin (a hormone that tells your brain when you are full)," states World Obesity Day.