Obesity News and Research

Latest Obesity News and Research

Researchers uncover dozens of traits driven by maternal versus paternal genes

Researchers developed a high-accuracy method to infer whether genetic variants come from the mother or father without needing parental genomes, analysing 286,666 UK Biobank participants. They uncovered over 30 parent-of-origin effects on traits from growth and metabolism to diabetes, many showing opposite effects depending on parental source.

7 Aug 2025

Personalizing endometrial cancer prevention through diet and lifestyle

This review synthesizes emerging evidence on modifiable risk factors for endometrial cancer (EC)-the sixth most common female malignancy globally-with rising incidence despite diagnostic advances.

7 Aug 2025

Updated multidisciplinary European guidelines redefine MASLD diagnosis and treatment

The 2024 European clinical practice guidelines introduce a pivotal terminology shift, replacing NAFLD (non-alcoholic fatty liver disease) with MASLD (metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease) and NASH with MASH (metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis).

7 Aug 2025

Sweetened tea doesn’t offer the same health benefits

Unsweetened tea is associated with reduced mortality risk, while sugar-sweetened varieties show no significant health benefits, according to recent studies.

7 Aug 2025

Eating French fries raises type 2 diabetes risk, major study finds

A large, multi-decade cohort study found that frequent French fry consumption raises type 2 diabetes risk, while baked, boiled, or mashed potatoes do not. Swapping any type of potato for whole grains, but not white rice, lowers diabetes risk.

6 Aug 2025

Alzheimer’s risk factors look different for men and women

Research on Alzheimer's risk factors shows significant sex differences, with implications for diagnosis and treatment in early-onset and late-onset cases.

6 Aug 2025

Diabetes drug linked to lower risks of dementia and early death

New research in Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism reveals that metformin, a medication traditionally prescribed to treat diabetes, is linked to lower risks of dementia and early death.

6 Aug 2025

Advanced imaging technique revolutionizes early detection of esophageal cancer

Researchers from Helmholtz Munich, the Technical University of Munich (TUM), and the Medical University of Vienna have developed an advanced imaging technique called "O2E" that allows clinics to detect cancerous lesions in the esophagus with unprecedented precision.

6 Aug 2025

Mother’s genetics may play an important role in influencing her child's weight

A mother's genetics may play a bigger role in determining whether a child becomes overweight than a father's, as a result of a concept known as genetic nurture, finds a new study led by UCL researchers.

5 Aug 2025

Research offers hope for weight loss without gastrointestinal distress

Weight loss and diabetes drugs on the market often do not achieve long-term weight loss for patients. GLP-1 drugs target brain neurons that control appetite but frequently cause side effects.

5 Aug 2025

Children’s obesity often traced back to parental genes

A new study finds that kids with obesity are more likely to have obese parents because they inherit obesity-related genes, and to a smaller extent, are impacted indirectly by genes carried by the mother – even when those genes aren't passed down.

5 Aug 2025

Breast milk fatty acids help babies sleep longer, study finds

Researchers found that higher levels of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) in human milk are associated with longer sleep duration in exclusively breastfed two-month-old infants. The strongest effects were observed for daytime (diurnal) sleep, especially with omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids.

5 Aug 2025

Are all healthy diets equal or does food processing make a difference?

A randomized crossover trial in the UK found that both ultra-processed (UPF) and minimally processed food (MPF) diets, when aligned with national guidelines, led to weight loss in adults with overweight or obesity. However, the MPF diet produced significantly greater reductions in weight, fat mass, and food cravings, highlighting the added benefits of limiting food processing.

5 Aug 2025

Weight loss with ozempic may weaken muscles even when size remains stable

As use of the popular anti-diabetic and weight-loss drug Ozempic skyrockets, so have concerns about the medication's side effects.

5 Aug 2025

Standing up more often may impact heart health for postmenopausal women

The simple daily habit of standing up more often may impact heart health for postmenopausal women,

5 Aug 2025

New treatment approach developed to prevent lupus nephritis

At the time when patients with lupus, or systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), are diagnosed, approximately 15% to 30% will already have the inflammation-caused kidney disease lupus nephritis, which compromises kidney function and can lead to kidney failure.

4 Aug 2025

Leptin could offer alternative to insulin for managing type 1 diabetes complication

More than a decade ago, researchers found that an acute complication of type 1 diabetes, diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), can be resolved with the hormone leptin, even in the absence of insulin.

4 Aug 2025

HIV trial points to semaglutide as a new anti-aging contender

Once-weekly semaglutide significantly slowed epigenetic aging in adults with HIV-associated lipohypertrophy, as measured by multiple DNA methylation clocks in a randomized controlled trial. These exploratory findings suggest GLP-1 receptor agonists could impact biological aging but require further validation in broader populations.

4 Aug 2025

Weight loss doubles when eating minimally processed foods over ultra-processed alternatives

When given nutritionally matched diets, participants lost twice as much weight eating minimally processed foods compared to ultra-processed foods, suggesting that cutting down on processing could help to sustain a healthy weight long term, finds a new clinical trial led by researchers at UCL and UCLH.

4 Aug 2025

New treatment shows greater success in reducing binge eating among veterans

Researchers from University of California San Diego have found that a novel treatment called regulation of cues combined with behavioral weight loss (ROC+BWL) was more effective than standard cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in reducing binge eating among veterans with overweight or obesity.

4 Aug 2025