Prelude to Obesity and Its Potential Amelioration

"The undeniable observation from the last several decades is that obesity treatment doesn't work very well. Clearly we need a different approach."

"The data show very clearly that folic acid and fortification of the food supply has been very effective in preventing this devastating developmental outcome of neural tube defects, which comprise things like spina bifida."

"We need to take a similar approach with obesity because each individual's body weight regulatory mechanism is largely based in the brain."

"[The reason the study is of interest is because] we were able to show direct association with human genetics."

"We already know that maternal obesity during pregnancy does promote obesity in her offspring. It's likely that maternal obesity could interfere with this epigenetic development and we could see how that could end up leaving her child as somewhat ill-equipped to properly regulate food intake and energy expenditure."

Dr. Robert Waterland, professor of pediatrics-nutrition, Baylor College of Medicine, Texas

A new study on mice found that if any of the changes go awry to a specific part of the brain early on, it could lead to significant weight gain later in life. Photo by Getty

According to a study recently published in the journal Scientific Advances conducted by researchers at Baylor College of Medicine along with other institutions, it is possible that obesity could be prevented by dietary supplements prior to pregnancy. According to the study's findings, the issue should be treated as a neurodevelopmental disorder.

 

The World Health Organization reported in 2016 that there are two billion people globally categorized as overweight, and of that total, 650 are classified as obese. Researchers hoped to discover how to stop what the study refers to as a worldwide epidemic. The study outlines a new approach; to treat obesity as a neurodevelopmental disorder -- some of which have been prevented successfully with dietary supplements.

 

The study cited the example of neural tube defects occurring in  human fetuses, prevented through augmentation in the diet of folic acid. The study, with the use of laboratory mice, focused on a region of the brain known to regulate food intake, physical activity and metabolism called the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus, explained the study's first author, Dr. Harry MacKay. 

In a fetus and in early infancy the arcuate nucleus undergoes epigenetic changes which later can affect weight regulation programing. Alterations to that part of the brain could lead to significant weight gain in later life, although cautioned Dr. Waterland, "exactly how this works remains unknown".