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Blunted acyl-ghrelin responses in children with obesity could boost hunger, overeating
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Compared with lean adolescents, those with obesity and insulin sensitivity have impaired acyl-ghrelin responses to fructose but not glucose, and those with obesity and insulin resistance have reduced responses to both, according to research published in Obesity.
The findings, from a study of glucose and fructose beverage ingestion, suggest that diminished suppression of acyl-ghrelin in childhood obesity, especially when insulin resistance is present, could promote both hunger and overeating, according to researchers.
“Obese children are likely to remain obese as adults, thus the hormonal responses to fructose in this population may have far reaching effects and deserve serious consideration,” the researchers wrote.”
Michelle Van Name, MD, of Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, and colleagues examined the impact of drink ingestion on ghrelin and peptide YY in 14 lean adolescents, 12 with obesity and insulin sensitivity and 15 with obesity and insulin resistance.
In the double-blind, cross-over study, participants consumed drinks containing 75 g of glucose or fructose in random order over 60 minutes, with serum collected every 10 minutes.
At baseline, acyl-ghrelin was highest in the lean group and lowest in the group with obesity and insulin resistance (P = .02). Following glucose ingestion, the lean group and the group with obesity and insulin sensitivity showed similar acyl-ghrelin decreases, with the largest drop among the group with obesity and insulin resistance (vs. lean, P = .03).
Compared with the lean group, suppression differences appeared more pronounced following fructose ingestion for those with obesity and insulin sensitivity (P = .008) and obesity and insulin resistance (P < .001). Those with obesity and insulin sensitivity reported increased hunger after fructose (P = .015).
For peptide YY, no significant differences were observed at baseline and minimal variance was noted following glucose, but the hormone did rise following fructose.
“We speculate that the impaired orexigenic hormonal responses to fructose seen in the obese adolescents may contribute to altered satiety and overeating,” the researchers wrote.
Glucose and fructose are not generally consumed in isolation, with their combined effect on gut hormones potentially different, the researchers underscored.
“Future studies should investigate the effects of these sugars in combination, as commonly consumed in high fructose corn syrup,” the researchers wrote. – by Allegra Tiver
Disclosure: Some researcher report relationships with Atrium Staffing for the New Haven Pfizer Clinical Research Unit AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Lilly, MannKind, Merck, Novartis and Novo Nordisk.
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