The effects of obesity mirror those of aging
Researchers identify a shared list of health issues, from DNA damage to cognitive decline
February 25, 2020
Science Daily/Concordia University
Researchers argue that obesity should be considered premature aging. They look at how obesity predisposes people to acquiring the kinds of potentially life-altering or life-threatening diseases normally seen in older individuals: compromised genomes, weakened immune systems, decreased cognition, increased chances of developing type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer's disease, cardiovascular disease, cancer and other illnesses.
Globally, an estimated 1.9 billion adults and 380 million children are overweight or obese. According to the World Health Organization, more people are dying from being overweight than underweight. Researchers at Concordia are urging health authorities to rethink their approach to obesity.
In their paper published in the journal Obesity Reviews, the researchers argue that obesity should be considered premature aging. They look at how obesity predisposes people to acquiring the kinds of potentially life-altering or life-threatening diseases normally seen in older individuals: compromised genomes, weakened immune systems, decreased cognition, increased chances of developing type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer's disease, cardiovascular disease, cancer and other illnesses.
The study was led by Sylvia Santosa, associate professor of health, kinesiology and applied physiology in the Faculty of Arts and Science. She and her colleagues reviewed more than 200 papers that looked at obesity's effects, from the level of the cell to tissue to the entire body. The study was co-authored by Bjorn Tam, Horizon postdoctoral fellow, and José Morais, an associate professor in the Department of Medicine at McGill University.
"We are trying to comprehensively make the argument that obesity parallels aging," explains Santosa, a Tier II Canada Research Chair in Clinical Nutrition. "Indeed, the mechanisms by which the comorbidities of obesity and aging develop are very similar."
From cells to systems
The paper looks at ways obesity ages the body from several different perspectives. Many previous studies have already linked obesity to premature death. But the researchers note that at the lowest levels inside the human body, obesity is a factor that directly accelerates the mechanisms of aging.
For instance, Santosa and her colleagues look at the processes of cell death and the maintenance of healthy cells -- apoptosis and autophagy, respectively -- that are usually associated with aging.
Studies have shown that obesity-induced apoptosis has been seen in mice hearts, livers, kidneys, neurons, inner ears and retinas. Obesity also inhibits autophagy, which can lead to cancer, cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and Alzheimer's.
At the genetic level, the researchers write that obesity influences a number of alterations associated with aging. These include the shortening of protective caps found on the ends of chromosomes, called telomeres. Telomeres in patients with obesity can be more than 25 per cent shorter than those seen in control patients, for instance.
Santosa and her colleagues further point out that obesity's effects on cognitive decline, mobility, hypertension and stress are all similar to those of aging.
Pulling out from the cellular level, the researchers say obesity plays a significant role in the body's fight against age-related diseases. Obesity, they write, speeds up the aging of the immune system by targeting different immune cells, and that later weight reduction will not always reverse the process.
The effects of obesity on the immune system, in turn, affect susceptibility to diseases like influenza, which often affects patients with obesity at a higher rate than normal-weight individuals. They are also at higher risk of sarcopenia, a disease usually associated with aging that features a progressive decline in muscle mass and strength.
Finally, the paper spells out how individuals with obesity are more susceptible to diseases closely associated with later-life onset, such as type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer's and various forms of cancer.
Similarities too big to ignore
Santosa says the inspiration for this study came to her when she realized how many children with obesity were developing adult-onset conditions of diseases, such as hypertension, high cholesterol and type 2 diabetes. She also realized that the comorbidities of obesity were similar to that of aging.
"I ask people to list as many comorbidities of obesity as they can," Santosa says. "Then I ask how many of those comorbidities are associated with aging. Most people will say, all of them. There is certainly something that is happening in obesity that is accelerating our aging process.'"
She thinks this research will help people better understand how obesity works and stimulate ideas on how to treat it.
"I'm hoping that these observations will focus our approach to understanding obesity a little more, and at the same time allow us to think of obesity in different ways. We're asking different types of questions than that which have traditionally been asked."
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/02/200225122954.htm
Insufficient sleep in children is associated with poor diet, obesity and more screen time
New study suggests a relationship between insufficient sleep and an unhealthy lifestyle
November 12, 2018
Science Daily/American Academy of Sleep Medicine
A new study conducted among more than 177,000 students suggests that insufficient sleep duration is associated with an unhealthy lifestyle profile among children and adolescents.
Results show that insufficient sleep duration was associated with unhealthy dietary habits such as skipping breakfast (adjusted odds ratio 1.30), fast-food consumption (OR 1.35) and consuming sweets regularly (OR 1.32). Insufficient sleep duration also was associated with increased screen time (OR 1.26) and being overweight/obese (OR 1.21).
"Approximately 40 percent of schoolchildren in the study slept less than recommended," said senior author Labros Sidossis, PhD, distinguished professor and chair of the Department of Kinesiology and Health at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey. "Insufficient sleeping levels were associated with poor dietary habits, increased screen time and obesity in both genders."
The study results are published in the Oct. 15 issue of the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine.
The American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends that children 6 to 12 years of age should sleep nine to 12 hours on a regular basis to promote optimal health. Teenagers 13 to 18 years of age should sleep eight to 10 hours.
Population data were derived from a school-based health survey completed in Greece by 177,091 children (51 percent male) between the ages of 8 and 17 years. Dietary habits, usual weekday and weekend sleeping hours, physical activity status, and sedentary activities were assessed through electronic questionnaires completed at school. Children who reported that they usually sleep fewer than nine hours per day, and adolescents sleeping fewer than eight hours per day, were classified as having insufficient sleep. Anthropometric and physical fitness measurements were obtained by physical education teachers.
A greater proportion of males than females (42.3 percent versus 37.3 percent) and of children compared with adolescents (42.1 percent versus 32.8 percent) reported insufficient sleep duration. Adolescents with an insufficient sleep duration also had lower aerobic fitness and physical activity.
"The most surprising finding was that aerobic fitness was associated with sleep habits," said Sidossis. "In other words, better sleep habits were associated with better levels of aerobic fitness. We can speculate that adequate sleep results in higher energy levels during the day. Therefore, children who sleep well are maybe more physically active during the day and hence have higher aerobic capacity."
The authors noted that the results support the development of interventions to help students improve sleep duration.
"Insufficient sleep duration among children constitutes an understated health problem in Westernized societies," Sidossis said. "Taking into consideration these epidemiologic findings, parents, teachers and health professionals should promote strategies emphasizing healthy sleeping patterns for school-aged children in terms of quality and duration."
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/11/181112191814.htm
Depression in early pregnancy linked to gestational diabetes
September 19, 2016
Science Daily/National Institutes of Health
A two-way link between depression and gestational diabetes has been uncovered by researchers. Women who reported feeling depressed during the first two trimesters of pregnancy were nearly twice as likely to develop gestational diabetes, according to an analysis of pregnancy records. Conversely, a separate analysis found that women who developed gestational diabetes were more likely to report postpartum depression six weeks after giving birth, compared to a similar group of women who did not develop gestational diabetes.
https://images.sciencedaily.com/2016/09/160919094450_1_540x360.jpg
Pregnant woman having her blood sugar/ glucose checked.
Credit: © Mediteraneo / Fotolia
Gestational diabetes is a form of diabetes (high blood sugar level) occurring only in pregnancy, which if untreated may cause serious health problems for mother and infant.
"Our data suggest that depression and gestational diabetes may occur together," said the study's first author, Stefanie Hinkle, Ph.D., staff scientist in the Division of Intramural Population Health Research at the NIH's Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD). "Until we learn more, physicians may want to consider observing pregnant women with depressive symptoms for signs of gestational diabetes. They also may want to monitor women who have had gestational diabetes for signs of postpartum depression."
Although obesity is known to increase the risk for gestational diabetes, the likelihood of gestational diabetes was higher for non-obese women reporting depression than for obese women with depression.
The researchers analyzed pregnancy records from the NICHD Fetal Growth Studies-Singleton Cohort, which tracked the progress of thousands of pregnancies, to understand the patterns of fetal growth. The study enrolled 2,334 non-obese and 468 obese women in weeks eight to 13 of pregnancy. The women responded to questionnaires on symptoms of depression when they enrolled in the study, again between the 16th and 22nd week of pregnancy, and then six weeks after giving birth. The researchers also reviewed the women's records to identify who had developed gestational diabetes.
"Of particular note, persistent depression from the first to second trimester set women at even greater risk for gestational diabetes" said the study's senior author, Cuilin Zhang, M.D., Ph.D, in the Division of Intramural Population Health Research at NICHD. Women who had the highest scores for depression in the first and second trimesters -- about 17 percent -- had nearly triple the risk for gestational diabetes when compared to women who had lower depression scores.
"Our results suggest it would be a good idea for clinicians to pay particular attention to women with high depression scores when evaluating the risk of gestational diabetes," Dr. Zhang added.
Although obesity increases the risk for gestational diabetes, non-obese women with high depression scores had nearly triple the risk for gestational diabetes than the other women in the study. Depression did not appear to increase the risk for gestational diabetes among obese women.
Currently, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends (link is external) that physicians screen patients at least once for depression during the perinatal period (link is external) (22 weeks of pregnancy through 7 days after birth.)
The researchers also found a higher risk for postpartum depression among the women who had gestational diabetes. Of the women who developed gestational diabetes, nearly 15 percent experienced depressive symptoms after birth, which was more than four times that of women who had not had gestational diabetes.
Dr. Hinkle stressed that the study was not able to prove a cause and effect relationship between symptoms of depression and gestational diabetes. The researchers added that earlier studies have shown that depression is associated with impaired glucose metabolism that may lead to higher blood sugar levels. Similarly, high blood sugar levels may lead to inflammation, hormonal, and other changes that could lead to symptoms of depression.Gestational diabetes is a form of diabetes (high blood sugar level) occurring only in pregnancy, which if untreated may cause serious health problems for mother and infant.
"Our data suggest that depression and gestational diabetes may occur together," said the study's first author, Stefanie Hinkle, Ph.D., staff scientist in the Division of Intramural Population Health Research at the NIH's Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD). "Until we learn more, physicians may want to consider observing pregnant women with depressive symptoms for signs of gestational diabetes. They also may want to monitor women who have had gestational diabetes for signs of postpartum depression."
Although obesity is known to increase the risk for gestational diabetes, the likelihood of gestational diabetes was higher for non-obese women reporting depression than for obese women with depression.
The researchers analyzed pregnancy records from the NICHD Fetal Growth Studies-Singleton Cohort, which tracked the progress of thousands of pregnancies, to understand the patterns of fetal growth. The study enrolled 2,334 non-obese and 468 obese women in weeks eight to 13 of pregnancy. The women responded to questionnaires on symptoms of depression when they enrolled in the study, again between the 16th and 22nd week of pregnancy, and then six weeks after giving birth. The researchers also reviewed the women's records to identify who had developed gestational diabetes.
"Of particular note, persistent depression from the first to second trimester set women at even greater risk for gestational diabetes" said the study's senior author, Cuilin Zhang, M.D., Ph.D, in the Division of Intramural Population Health Research at NICHD. Women who had the highest scores for depression in the first and second trimesters -- about 17 percent -- had nearly triple the risk for gestational diabetes when compared to women who had lower depression scores.
"Our results suggest it would be a good idea for clinicians to pay particular attention to women with high depression scores when evaluating the risk of gestational diabetes," Dr. Zhang added.
Although obesity increases the risk for gestational diabetes, non-obese women with high depression scores had nearly triple the risk for gestational diabetes than the other women in the study. Depression did not appear to increase the risk for gestational diabetes among obese women.
Currently, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends (link is external) that physicians screen patients at least once for depression during the perinatal period (link is external) (22 weeks of pregnancy through 7 days after birth.)
The researchers also found a higher risk for postpartum depression among the women who had gestational diabetes. Of the women who developed gestational diabetes, nearly 15 percent experienced depressive symptoms after birth, which was more than four times that of women who had not had gestational diabetes.
Dr. Hinkle stressed that the study was not able to prove a cause and effect relationship between symptoms of depression and gestational diabetes. The researchers added that earlier studies have shown that depression is associated with impaired glucose metabolism that may lead to higher blood sugar levels. Similarly, high blood sugar levels may lead to inflammation, hormonal, and other changes that could lead to symptoms of depression.
Science Daily/SOURCE :https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/09/160919094450.htm