Obesity Trends

While many consumers have hopped on the Ozempic bandwagon in recent months to help them lose weight, few studies have looked at viable treatment options for children struggling with their weight. 

Now, a new study, known as the SCALE Kids trial, has put the obesity drug, liraglutide, to the test in kids as young as 6 years old. 

Ultimately, the medication was found to be both safe and effective for children between the ages of 6 and 12. 

“Obesity is the most common chronic disease of childhood,” said lead researcher Professor Claudia Fox. “Left untreated, obesity in childhood almost universally persists into adulthood and is associated with significant ill health, including diabetes and cardiovascular disease, and for some, premature death. 

“However, effective treatment options to date are limited,” she said. “The backbone of obesity treatment is lifestyle therapy – changes in diet and physical activity – but when used alone, the effect is modest and, as yet, no medication is approved for the treatment of general obesity in children who are younger than 12. 

“Liraglutide is approved as an adjunct to lifestyle therapy in adults and adolescents with obesity and, in this study, we explored its safety and efficacy in under-12s,” Fox explained. 

A look into the study

The researchers had 82 children involved in the study, all of who were struggling with obesity at the start of the study. In addition to guidance on healthy habits, the kids were divided into two groups – one group of 56 kids received weekly injections of liraglutide, while the remaining 26 kids received a placebo, for 56 weeks. 

At the end of the study, the researchers found that liraglutide was effective at lowering kids’ body mass index (BMI). While weight loss was harder to track, as kids are always growing and changing, the findings point towards overall efficacy in getting kids healthier.  

BMI went down by 5.8% in the children taking liraglutide, while children in the placebo group saw an increase of 1.6% in their BMI. The study also found that over 46% of kids taking liraglutide saw at least a 5% reduction in their BMI, while 8.7% of children on the placebo drug had the same. 

Also of note, the children taking the liraglutide experienced improvements in their blood pressure and blood sugar control – two important markers of metabolic health. 

“Although there is no consensus on the definition of a clinically meaningful BMI reduction in children, a 5% reduction has previously been shown to be associated with improvement in some obesity-related health conditions,” Professor Fox said. 

When the study concluded and the children stopped taking the drug, they experienced increases in weight and BMI. 

Is it safe? 

The majority of children in both groups experienced side effects from the drug, but the researchers believe that the positives outweigh the potential negatives. 

Around 80% of children taking liraglutide and nearly 54% of children taking the placebo experienced gastrointestinal side effects. Ultimately, 10.7% of the kids taking the drug discontinued treatment because of the side effects, which is aligned with the rate of serious side effects in teens and adults. 

“The results of this study offer considerable promise to children living with obesity,” Professor Fox said. “Now with the possibility of a medication that addresses the underlying physiology of obesity, there is hope that children living with obesity can live healthier, more productive lives.”

A new study conducted by researchers from Monash University explored how childhood obesity may impact consumers’ cognitive function as they go into midlife.

After following study participants for three decades, they learned that kids with the strongest physical fitness were likely to become middle-aged adults with the strongest cognitive function. However, they found that the inverse was also true.

“Clusters of low fitness and high obesity in childhood are associated with poorer health outcomes in later life, however their relationship with cognition is unknown,” the researchers wrote. “Identifying such profiles may inform strategies to reduce risk of cognitive decline.” 

Childhood habits can affect long-term health

For the study, the researchers followed over 1,200 participants for 30 years; all of the participants were between the ages of seven and 15 in 1985, and the team tracked their health outcomes through 2019. The children were enrolled in the Australian Childhood Determinants of Adult Health Study, and the team analyzed their waist-to-hip ratio, muscular power, cardiorespiratory fitness, and muscular endurance; the participants also completed cognitive assessments in the final two years of the study. 

The researchers learned that kids with the strongest cardiorespiratory fitness were likely to become adults with the strongest cognitive function. On the other hand, those with the weakest fitness levels during childhood didn’t perform as well on the cognitive assessments in middle age. 

The study showed that better muscular fitness, cardiorespiratory fitness, and a lower waist-to-hip ratio during childhood were linked with improvements in three key areas in middle age: overall cognitive function, processing speed, and attention. 

The researchers explained that these findings are important because they show that habits that are learned during childhood can affect consumers into middle age and beyond. The team said it’s important to identify what factors can influence physical and cognitive health throughout life. 

“Developing strategies that improve low fitness and decrease obesity levels in childhood are important because it could contribute to improvements in cognitive performance in midlife,” said researcher Michele Callisaya. “Importantly, the study also indicates that protective strategies against future cognitive decline may need to start as far back as early childhood, so that the brain can develop sufficient reserve against developing conditions such as dementia in older life.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from Edith Cowan University explored how lifting weights may benefit consumers with obesity who are trying to lose weight. 

One premise of the research is that aerobic exercise may not be possible for everyone. For consumers who are unable to run, jog, or perform other aerobic activities, the researchers say resistance training can be an effective way to become healthier and reach weight loss goals.

“Usually when we talk about obesity, body composition, or weight loss, we only hear about aerobic exercise,” said researcher Pedro Lopez. “This paper shows we can use resistance training and achieve meaningful effects with a diet based on caloric reduction. We can reduce body fat percentage, whole-fat body mass, body weight, and BMI. If you’re comparing the literature, these effects are similar to aerobic exercise with caloric restriction in adults who are overweight or obese.” 

Resistance training has health benefits

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from over 4,100 participants who were part of nearly 120 studies through December 2020. The different studies looked at the ways aerobic exercise, resistance training, and diet all affected health outcomes for those with obesity. 

Ultimately, the researchers learned that weight lifting was effective for those with obesity who were trying to lose weight. Participants had the greatest weight loss outcomes when they were able to cut back on their calories and follow a resistance training program. The team also observed the greatest improvements in body fat percentage and whole body fat mass for these participants. 

When the participants combined both aerobic exercise and resistance training, they were also more likely to have better weight loss outcomes. For those who aren’t able to perform aerobic exercises, or would prefer to have options when it comes to their physical activity, these findings show that resistance training can be a successful option. 

The researchers also learned that following a resistance training routine helped the participants improve their lean muscle mass, which can be difficult – especially when cutting back on calorie intake. The team explained that diet is an incredibly important piece of the weight loss process. 

“If you want to lose weight, you have to reduce your calorie intake,” Lopez said. 

Previous studies have highlighted the health risks associated with the use of pesticides. Now, researchers from McMaster University explored how a commonly used pesticide may be impacting obesity rates around the world. 

Their work showed that chlorpyrifos  --a pesticide banned in Canada that is used to clean fruits and vegetables -- may prohibit the body from burning calories, leading to weight gain. 

“Lifestyle changes around diet and exercise rarely lead to sustained weight loss,” said researcher Gregory Steinberg. “We think part of the problem may be this intrinsic dialing back of the metabolic furnace by chlorpyrifos.” 

The impact on metabolism

The researchers conducted a study on mice to determine how pesticides can impact metabolism, weight gain, and obesity. They gave the mice high-fat diets and then analyzed how exposure to chlorpyrifos affected their health outcomes. They also paid close attention to brown fat cells, which are the cells that aid in burning calories and weight loss. 

Ultimately, the researchers found that chlorpyrifos altered the normal function of brown fat cells. Rather than burning calories, exposure to the pesticide made the mice more likely to store extra calories, which is likely to contribute to weight gain and obesity. 

“Brown fat is the metabolic furnace in our body, burning calories, unlike normal fat that is used to store them,” Steinberg said. “This generates heat and prevents calories from being deposited on our bodies as normal white fat. We know brown fat is activated during cold and when we eat.” 

Though the study was conducted on mice, the researchers believe the findings can translate to human metabolisms. They explained that an extra five pounds of weight gain each year can greatly increase the risk of obesity. Unfortunately, putting on that much weight isn’t hard. Storing only 40 extra calories per day through chlorpyrifos exposure would be enough to do the trick.

Losing weight and keeping it off can be a difficult process for many consumers, but researchers from the University of Copenhagen are exploring ways to maintain a healthy weight loss. 

Their study focused on obese participants who first changed their diets to lose weight. The team found that consistently engaging in moderate to intense physical activity and taking an appetite-suppressing drug helped people maintain weight loss while staying healthy.

“The problem is that people are fighting against biological forces when losing weight,” said researcher Signe Torekov. “The appetite increases simultaneously with decreased energy consumption, and this counteracts weight loss maintenance. We have an appetite-stimulating hormone, which increases dramatically when we lose weight, and simultaneously the level of the appetite-suppressing hormone drops dramatically. 

“In addition, a weight loss can provoke loss of muscle mass, while the body reduces energy consumption. Thus, when the focus in obesity treatment has been on how to obtain a weight loss -- rather than how to maintain a weight loss -- it is really difficult to do something about your situation,” Torekov said. 

The keys to maintaining weight loss

The researchers analyzed 215 participants with obesity who had lost roughly 30 pounds before the study began but had no exercise routine in place. 

To see what methods worked best to maintain a healthy weight loss, the team created four groups: two received an appetite-suppressing drug and two were given a placebo. The groups were divided even further based on exercise; one group in each of the drug and placebo subgroups was given a moderate to intense workout routine, while the other was told to carry on with their existing physical activity regimen. 

Ultimately, the researchers learned that the combination of an exercise routine and the appetite-suppressing drug yielded the best health outcomes. Participants in this group saw improvements to key health measures, such as blood sugar, fat mass, and overall quality of life. They also lost more weight over the course of the one-year study by adhering to both treatments. 

However, not all of the groups had such positive responses to their interventions. Those who were given the placebo pill and didn’t adopt an exercise routine had a higher risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes; they also gained back half the weight they had lost. Participants who had either just received the drug or had just started exercising maintained their weight loss, but they didn’t gain any additional health benefits.

Having support is important

The researchers believe a key component of this study was the support services that were available to the participants over the course of the year. Having these resources in place helped guide participants through their weight loss and health goals, and the team believes this should be adopted more widely. 

“Without a follow-up on whether people actually have support to perform exercise, the treatment will not be enough,” Torekov said. “Therefore, we also followed up with the participants on an ongoing basis to ensure that they received the support they needed in order to exercise. That is necessary, because maintaining weight loss is extremely hard. People need to understand this. Once you have lost weight, you are not ‘cured.’ The ongoing exercise and effort will likely need to continue for many years.” 

As many consumers are looking to follow healthier diets, experts continue to find how the things we put into our bodies can affect everything from our immune response to life expectancy. 

Now, researchers from Princeton University have discovered that the development of obesity and disease could stem from evolutionary diet changes. They explained that our bodies were made to digest the types of food our ancestors ate; however, because present-day diets have shifted so much from that, our metabolisms struggle to keep up, which increases the likelihood of disease. 

“Humans evolved in a very different environment than the one we’re currently living in,” said researcher Amanda Lea. “No one diet is universally bad. It’s about the mismatch between your evolutionary history and what you’re currently eating.” 

Observing dietary changes

For this study, the researchers studied the Turkana population in Kenya. In recent years, the group has split in two: the remote portion of the population continues to rely on the animals and plants around them for food, while another portion has moved into more urban areas and has incorporated more processed foods and carbohydrates into their diets.  

“We realized that we had the opportunity to study the effect of transitioning away from a traditional lifestyle, relying on almost 80 percent animal byproducts -- a diet extremely protein-rich and rich in fats, with very little to no carbohydrates -- to a mostly carbohydrate diet,” said researcher Julian Ayroles. “This presented an unprecedented opportunity: genetically homogenous populations whose diets stretch across a lifestyle gradient from relatively ‘matched’ to extremely ‘mismatched’ with their recent evolutionary history.” 

In addition to analyzing the diets of both groups, the researchers also evaluated several different biomarkers that could be linked to disease, including body mass index (BMI), cholesterol, blood pressure, and body fat percentage, among others. 

They learned that those who had maintained the traditional Turkana diet had the lowest disease risk and the greatest health outcomes compared to those who had adopted a more current diet and lifestyle. Those in the latter group were more likely to develop high blood pressure, obesity, and diabetes, among several other conditions.  

“There’s a cumulative effect,” Lea said. “The more you experience the urban environment -- the evolutionarily mismatched environment -- the worse it’s going to be for your health.” 

Moving forward, the researchers don’t recommend that all consumers follow the Turkana diet. Instead, the goal is personal: what part of our ancestors’ diets could most benefit our health and wellness today? 

“One of the most remarkable things about the Turkana if that if you and I went on the Turkana diet, we would get sick really quickly!” Ayroles said. “The key to metabolic health may be to align our diet and activity levels with that of our ancestors, but we still need to determine which components matter most.” 

Experts have recently found ways that probiotics can help consumers’ physical and mental health, but a new study is exploring how these bacteria can help young people stay healthy. 

According to researchers, childhood obesity is likely to be more manageable when kids follow a healthy diet and take a daily probiotic. 

“Probiotic supplements are frequently given to people without proper evidence [or] data,” said researcher Dr. Flavia Prodam. “These findings start to give evidence of the efficacy and safety of two probiotic strains in treating obesity in a younger population.” 

Encouraging healthier habits

The researchers had 100 kids between the ages of six and 18 participate in the eight-week long study. While all of the participants were instructed to follow healthy diets for the duration of the study, half of the group was given a probiotic supplement and the other half was given a placebo. At the end of the eight weeks, the researchers assessed the participants’ health outcomes to determine the best course of action for childhood obesity. 

Ultimately, the researchers found that the combination of the probiotic supplement and a healthy diet were more effective than dieting alone. The study revealed that kids who took a probiotic had improved metabolisms, lower body mass indices (BMIs), and better insulin resistance than the group who was given a placebo. 

Because of these health benefits, the researchers are hopeful that this simple intervention can be implemented more widely among young people struggling to maintain a healthy weight. While everyone reacts differently to supplements, and a healthy diet is imperative, probiotics could be beneficial in helping keep childhood obesity at bay. 

“The next step for our research is to identify patients that could benefit from this probiotic treatment, with a view to creating a more personalized weight-loss strategy,” said Dr. Prodam. “We also want to decipher more clearly the role of diet and probiotics on microbiome composition. This could help us to understand how the microbiota is different in young people with obesity.”