There are several key players in our body’s regulation of hunger, satiety, and energy expenditure. Leptin and ghrelin are two pivotal hormones involved in our desire to eat. Within that leptin pathway, another key regulator Read more…
Type-2 diabetes affects about 9% of the US population and millions other world-wide. In those over age 65, one in four people has type-2 diabetes. While the overall numbers are a bit staggering, it is interesting to note that the peak for new cases was in the '90s with a decrease in cases from 2005-2017.[ref]
Diabetes is thought to be caused partly by environment and partly due to genetics. Genetic susceptibility has been linked to a number of different genes, but one that stands out as being particularly relevant to almost all populations is the TCF7L2 gene.
The TCF7L2 (transcription factor 7-like 2) gene is involved in the regulation of blood glucose level with insulin by affecting the expression of pro-glucagon. Variants in TCFL2 are tied to type-2 diabetes, obesity, higher BMI, and larger waist circumference. The SNPs listed below have been found to up-regulate TCF7L2 in pancreatic beta cells.[ref] The up-regulation is thought to impair insulin secretion from the beta cells rather than causing insulin resistance. [ref] [ref]
Why is this important? If you have one of the TCF7L2 variants that increase your risk of diabetes, there are lifestyle and diet choices that have been shown in studies to negate that increased risk. (more…)
Ever wished your body could just naturally know that it has had enough food and turn off the desire to eat? Do you wonder why other people don’t seem to struggle with wanting to eat Read more…
Circadian rhythms are the natural biological rhythms that shape our biology. Most people know about the master clock in our brain that keeps us on a wake-sleep cycle over 24 hours. This is driven by Read more…
The perilipin 1 gene codes for the protein that covers lipid droplets in fat cells. This coating protects the lipid droplets from the enzymes that break down fats for use as energy in the body. Increased Read more…
Turning up the heat on your metabolism is the job for UCP2. The UCP2 gene codes for an uncoupling protein that works in the mitochondria (energy powerhouse) of our cells, producing heat through the uncoupling Read more…
I was catching up on podcasts this weekend and listened to a fascinating one by Dr. Rhonda Patrick. She does the Found My Fitness podcast and had recently interviewed Dr. Panda. The interview was on Read more…
I’m geeking out this week and diving deep into the genetics of weight and obesity. One fairly well-studied variant, rs5443, confers a 2x to 3x risk of obesity and is found in the GNB3 gene. Read more…
Adiponectin, a hormone secreted from adipose (fat) tissue, is involved in glucose regulation. Studies show that low levels of adiponectin correlate with insulin resistance and diabetes. Interestingly, although adiponectin is secreted from adipose tissue, levels Read more…