Belly fat has long been blamed for obesity-related disease but it may actually only be something of an innocent bystander, according to research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Liver fat may be the important risk factor for obesity-related metabolic disorders often linked to diabetes, heart disease and other diseases. Includes comments by senior investigator and WUSTL nutrition expert Samuel Klein.

References:

1. Aug. 26, 2009 — Belly fat may be innocent bystander in the United Press International

and 2 others.

Morley Safer meets with members of CRS, the Calorie Restriction Society, a group that's been severely restricting their calories for years now. They are also part of a WUSTL study to see if this kind of self-denial make them live longer, healthier lives.

References:

1. Jan. 25, 2009 — Fountain Of Youth In A Wine Rx? in the CBS 60 Minutes

One of the largest studies of its kind shows just how sluggish American children become once they hit the teen years: While 90 percent of 9-year-olds get a couple of hours of exercise most days, fewer than 3 percent of 15-year-olds do.
WUSTL nutrition expert Samuel Klein, director of WUSTL medical school's Human Nutritioin Center, said the research provides a more powerful snapshot than previous studies.

References:

1. July 16, 2008 — Study: When kids become teens, they get sluggish in the Associated Press Online

and 79 others.

Human studies plus laboratory work with yeast, worms, flies and rodents are propelling scientists closer to understanding what causes aging, how to delay it -- and how to translate such progress from the lab to real life.
One of the studies mentioned was the first calorie restriction clinical trials conducted by WUSTL and LSU.

References:

1. April 22, 2008 — Longevity quest moves slowly from lab to life in the MSNBC.com

and 2 others.

The recent report that having a pot belly in your 40s roughly triples your risk of dementia in later life is just the tip of an ominous iceberg. WUSTL research on liposuction in which found no change in the women's cholesterol levels, triglycerides, insulin sensitivity or other health risks. "If they had lost that much fat by dieting, they would have substantially improved their metabolic profile, but they didn't," says Samuel Klein, director of WUSM's Center for Human Nutrition and the study's principal investigator.

References:

1. April 15, 2008 — Gut Check: Why Doctors Say Not All Fat Is Created Equal in the The Wall Street Journal

and 2 others.

Reporting in the October issue of Behavioral Neuroscience, scientists from the University at Buffalo say people with genetically lower levels of dopamine, a brain chemical that helps make eating and other behaviors more rewarding, may be driven to consume more food.
Samuel Klein, director of WUSTL's Center for Human Nutrition, said the study "addresses an important and relatively overlooked area in obesity -- the contribution of reward addiction in the regulation of food intake."

References:

1. Oct. 17, 2007 — Genes Might Help Drive Overeating in the U.S. News & World Report online

and 7 others.

Matt Lauer hosts this segment and speaks with nutrition experts about new research that suggests that some types of obesity may be linked to a common virus.
WUSTL nutrition researcher Samuel Klein is one of the experts commenting.

References:

1. Aug. 22, 2007 — Dr. Louis Arrone discusses new research showing some obesity may be caused by virus in the NBC Today Show

Consumer Reports magazine examines diet programs in its June issue.
WUSTL nutrition expert Samuel Klein comments on the problem unrealistic expectations can cause dieters.

References:

1. May 8, 2007 — Study: Dieters slather on the optimism in the USA Today

Extra pounds usually cause several medical problems, not just one, says Sharon Brangman, a geriatrician in Syracuse, N.Y., and a board member of the American Geriatrics Society. "People who are 30 or 40 pounds overweight are more likely to have high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes and lots of joint pain and problems. Osteoarthritis of the knees is probably the biggest problem I deal with," she says. Knees and hips may wear out sooner and require replacement. "Another factor is decreased muscle mass and quality, which results in less strength," says Samuel Klein, director of the Center for Human Nutrition at the WUSTL School of Medicine. In his research, he has found that obese adults had less muscle strength than other older adults.

References:

1. June 5, 2006 — Lose weight now, move better later in the USA Today

While we all know that excess pounds increase your risk of certain diseases, you may not realize that where you carry the weight makes a big difference. Researchers have found that abdominal fat could be even more hazardous to your health.
WUSTL nutrition expert Samuel Klein, director of the Center for Human Nutrition, explains why.

References:

1. May 23, 2006 — The hidden dangers of belly fat in the MSNBC.com

Northwestern University researchers tracked 17,643 patients for three decades and found that being overweight in mid-life substantially increased the risk of dying of heart disease later in life — even in people who began the study with healthy blood pressure and cholesterol levels.
WUSTL obesity expert Samuel Klein comments.

References:

1. Jan. 11, 2006 — New Study Links Obesity, Heart Problems in the San Francisco Chronicle

and 126 others.

Story on mixed signals the public is getting by conflicting or "flip-flopping" medical studies — in this case, on the death risk of obesity.
WUSTL nutrition specialist Samuel Klein comments on the body-mass index, the government's standard measure of overweight and obesity.

References:

1. May 2, 2005 — Experts say obesity still a health risk in the Associated Press

WUSTL researcher Daniel Kelly and his colleagues were studying the heart when they made a discovery that could provide new understanding for how diabetes develops in overweight and obese people. Fat burning is touted as the key to weight loss, but it may also link obesity and diabetes. The results of their study appear today in the journal Cell Metabolism. WUSTL nutritiion expert Sam Klein comments.

References:

1. Feb. 16, 2005 — WU study may yield key to obesity, diabetes in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch

and 22 others.

Samuel Klein, director of the Center for Human Nutrition at the School of Medicine, says it looks as if "we should tell overweight patients to get more sleep. This is advice that's easier to follow than eat less and exercise more."

References:

1. Dec. 7, 2004 — Healthy weight might rest with diet, exercise and sleep-linked hormones in the USA Today

and 1 others.

According to a government report, Americans are getting a little taller and a lot heavier. Adults are roughly an inch taller than they were in the 1960s, on average, and nearly 25 pounds heavier. School of Medicine obesity researcher Samuel Klein says the trends are the same for children so expect the next generation of adults to be even heavier than they are today.

References:

1. Oct. 28, 2004 — Americans Getting Taller, Much Heavier in the Associated Press Online

and 95 others.

A new study reports that patients who undergo obesity surgery get far more than cosmetic benefits - many also shed fat-related ailments including diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol, researchers say. School of Medicine obesity researcher Samuel Klein, who was not involved in the study, comments.

References:

1. Oct. 13, 2004 — Obesity Surgery Could Cure Diabetes in the Associated Press Online

and 17 others.

The search for a simple cure for obesity is still failing. Ask any researcher, no matter how esoteric his specialty, for the best way to lose weight and he will reply, "Eat less and exercise more." But now we have a much better understanding of why the search is so difficult--and where we should look, not just to treat obesity as such, but also to recognize that some people are likely to stay fat to minimize the negative effects on their health. Samuel Klein, director of the Center for Human Nutrition at the School of Medicine, comments on his recent research.

References:

1. Aug. 23, 2004 — What you don't know about fat in the Newsweek Magazine

The people who taught chubby Americans to embrace burgers and eschew buns are now applying their waistline-reducing formula to the prevention and control of type 2 diabetes. Studies have compared low-carb diets with more traditional low-fat diets and found that after six months, the low-carb eaters lost more weight. After 12 months, the difference vanished, but the low-carb group had increased insulin sensitivity, a measure of the body's ability to use insulin efficiently, says Samuel Klein, the Danforth Professor of Medicine and Nutritional Sciences at the School of Medicine.

References:

1. Aug. 2, 2004 — Atkins legacy takes on diabetes in the USA Today

and 1 others.

Washington University nutritionist Sam Klein is supporting claims by Anheuser-Busch that a cold, tall frosty beer and the South Beach Diet don't have to be mutually exclusive. The nation's largest brewer is taking aim at the South Beach Diet with a national ad campaign, which claims there is misinformation presented in the best-selling low-carb diet book. The fight is over maltose, a form of sugar. The book says beer is loaded with maltose, which has a ''higher glycemic index than white bread'' and is "even worse than table sugar." But according to Klein, director of the Center for Human Nutrition at Washington University: ''You don't need to be without beer on a diet as long as you account for the calories and consume it in moderation.''

References:

1. April 22, 2004 — Beer giant, Sobe diet at odds on bellying up to a brew in the Miami Herald

and 7 others.