|
Infants’ leptin may foretell obesity
CHICAGO-If a 4-month-old has high serum leptin levels, obesity may be in the future.
Looking for early warnings of obesity, a University of Pittsburgh team says its study of 12 baby boys found a correlation between adiposity at a year and the early levels of leptin, the product of the ob gene that in adults regulates feeding via fat stores and the hypothalamus.
The children ate the same formula from birth to 12 months, consuming no solid food before four months. From 4 months to a year, serum leptins dropped from 4.99 ng/ml to 3.57 ng/ml, while adiposity rose slightly, Dr. Carol Gilmour told the Midwest Society for Pediatric Research meeting here.
Unlike percent body-fat at four months, which did not correlate with adiposity at a year, leptin was a strong predictor, possibly allowing intervention before a child actually becomes fat, she says. -Anne S. Harding
|
