Study Strengthens Link between Virus and Weight Gain

[Mr. McD]

New study results bolster the controversial hypothesis that certain cases of obesity are contagious. Over the last 20 years, some research has suggested that certain strains of human and avian adenoviruses--responsible for ailments ranging from the chest colds to pink eye--actually make individuals build up more fat cells. Having antibodies to one strain in particular, so-called Ad-36, proved to correlate with the heaviest obese people, and in one study, pairs of twins differed in heft depending on exposure to that virus. Now researchers have identified another strain of adenovirus that makes chickens plump.

http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?chanID=sa003&articleID=000EEADC-A456-13DA-A45683414B7F0000

[rfranklin]

1. Actually, eating too much high carb food makes you fat...

when combined with lack of exercise. I'm sorry but fat cells do not plump up without being fed.

[Sal Minella]

2. I'll bet you've never been overweight a day in your life,

have you? I haven't had ice cream for years, never take any kind of dessert, avoid butter and sugar...and you would no doubt take one look at me and conclude I stuff my face 24/7.

My stepmother stuffed herself like a sumo wrestler and stayed skinny as a model all her life -- and then had the gall to ridicule her sister for being heavy.

It's enough to make me want to believe in reincarnation, so the "fatties" could watch the holier-than-thous fight their weight the next time around.

[MrMonk]

3. A lack of self-discipline, perhaps? Insufficient moral fiber?

[bananas]

5. And viruses don't cause colds or ulcers.

Just because you can stifle a sneeze doesn't mean colds are caused by lack of willpower. They used to tell people with ulcers to reduce stress and drink milk and take antacids for the rest of their life, now they give them antibiotics and they are cured forever, no more special diet or drugs or willpower needed. There are lots of thin people who eat high-carb food and don't exercise. If you don't think a virus can affect metabolism, maybe you never had a fever from the flu.

Though the infected chickens and noninfected controls consumed the same amount of food and were exposed to the same conditions, chickens carrying Ad-37 were found to have nearly three times as much fat in their guts and more than two times as much fat over their entire body at the end of the three-and-a-half week period. The other two virus strains appeared to have little effect on weight.

[Mr. McD]

4. I eat very low carb, and I exercise

I eat about 65% fat(mostly from animal sources,) <8% carbs(it is the only way I can control my Hypertriglyceridemia >500), the rest protein. I am still overweight.:shrug: Just to much BBQ I guess.