Certain chemicals may promote overweight

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AFP

Tuesday, February 13, 2018 16:36

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Tuesday, February 13, 2018 16:36

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Some of the chemicals used in food packaging, on non-stick pans, or even in the clothing would promote weight gain by interfering with the metabolism, especially in women, reports a us study published Thursday.

“For the first time, our results have uncovered a new pathway by which PFASs (substances perfluoroalkyles, editor’s Note) could interfere with the regulation of body mass in humans and thereby contribute to the obesity epidemic,” said Qi Sun, lead author of the study, who works in the department of nutrition at Harvard university.

The study, published in the journal PLOS Medicine and carried out in the years 2000, examined the effects of four diets followed for a period of two years. The weight loss and the rate of PFASs in blood were measured among the 621 participants obese or overweight.

On average, participants lost approximately 6.4 pounds in the first six months, but have resumed 2,7 kilos in the course of the next year and a half.

“Those who have picked up the most weight are also the ones who had the highest levels of PFASs in the blood, and this link was stronger in women,” details the study.

The PFASs are present in our environment in the past 60 years and in particular have contaminated the drinking water near industrial sites, military bases or water treatment plants.

“The results indicate that limiting or avoiding exposure to PFASs may help people to keep body weight stable after weight loss, especially in women,” says another academic at Harvard, Philippe Grandjean, co-author of the study.