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Promising New Causal Explanations for Obesity and Obesity-Related DiseasesIndian Health Services, Elko, Nevada
Department of Physiologic Nursing, University of Nevada, Las Vegas School of Nursing, Las Vegas, Nevada, sally.miller{at}ccmail.nevada.edu
Department of Physiologic Nursing, University of Nevada, Las Vegas School of Nursing
Current explanations for obesity center around a predisposition in genotype and phenotype, possibly triggered by an inflammatory process or event, and exacerbated by environmental and psychological factors. It is likely that a variety of physiologic factors may act in combination to produce clinical obesity. Leptin resistance may be an important neurochemical cause of obesity; elevated leptin levels have been correlated with weight gain over extended time periods. Genetic studies support the postulate that a gene originating with our cave-dwelling ancestors, critical to survival when food was scare, has evolved into a trigger for obesity and related diseases. A variety of biochemical markers are prevalent in obesity and obesity-linked disease states. C-reactive protein, interleukin-6, and others are elevated in obesity, supporting the hypothesis that inflammation plays a role in the condition. Tumor necrosis factor-
Key Words: obesity leptin adipose tissue inflammation
Biological Research For Nursing, Vol. 8, No. 3,
223-233 (2007) This article has been cited by other articles:
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is overexpressed in obesity and diabetes, suggesting that it may be part of the link between the 2 conditions. 