Can obese individuals influence their genetic risk of obesity by moderate wine consumption?
A study from the Department of Nutrition, Faculty of Health Sciences, from the Ariel University, Israel, has provided new insight on the interaction between genetics and lifestyle in obesity.
In the 21st century, the obesity epidemic presents a great challenge within the healthcare sector. These global epidemic impacts adults, adolescents, and children worldwide. However, obesity is not only excess weight; it is a critical risk factor for a many health complications, including but not limited to diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, and certain cancer types. The etiology of obesity is complex, with an interplay between genetic predispositions and environmental factors.
The aim of the current study was to unravel the interplay between genetic predisposition and lifestyle choices and thus, thereby contributing to the evolving field of personalized nutrition and interventions for managing obesity.
The study analyzed 5,824 Israeli adults, with an average age of 55 years, 54% of them with a body mass index (BMI) ≥ 30 (*). The relationship between genetic predisposition to obesity was measured with a genetic score of 8 genes (SNPs) with a proven association with obesity and their lifestyle habits were assessed.
As expected, the results showed a higher genetic predisposition correlated with a higher BMI and a higher risk of obesity. It was also observed that genetic risk was also related to environmental risk factors such as sedentary lifestyle, consumption of sugary drinks and poor eating habits, i.e. there was a higher degree of obesity when there were more of these risky lifestyle habits and greater genetic predisposition. Physical activity significantly reduced the risk of obesity at all levels of genetic risk.
The authors also evaluated the impact that wine consumption could have on these factors. Moderate wine consumption was found to be inversely related to the risk of obesity, for any genetic risk. This suggests that moderate wine consumption could mitigate the impact of genetic risk on BMI. Previous studies had already described a lower risk of obesity among moderate wine consumers and the current study supports this hypothesis.
This population-based study provided an important step towards a better understanding and possible strategies to manage and treat obesity. The results emphasize the critical role of environmental factors to the general population and in particular to genetically predisposed to obesity individuals. Specific lifestyle adjustments, including physical exercise of ≥90 min/week, avoidance of sugary drinks consumption, pursuing healthy eating habits, and, if relevant, incorporating moderate wine consumption can play an important role. The genetic predisposition cannot be changed; however, the lifestyle habits can be modified to reduce the risk of developing obesity.
(*) Body Mass Index (BMI):
- Underweight: under 18.5 kg/m2
- Normal weight: 5 to 24.9
- Overweight: 25 to 29.9
- Obese: 30 or more
