Genetics and Pathophysiology of Obesity Essay

Please read the following case study thoroughly and then answer the following questions:

Case Study

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Luis is a 9-year-old Hispanic Latino male who presents to the Pediatric Clinic. His mother explains to you that she observes that Luis sleeps with his mouth open, she hears him snoring loudly at night, and sometimes he stops breathing for a few seconds which wakes him up. She notices he looks tired and he is cranky when he wakes up in the morning. When he comes home from school he wants to take a nap. Yesterday his teacher called his mother about him falling asleep in class. He does not engage in any physical activities because he is too tired. Genetics and Pathophysiology of Obesity Essay

Your initial assessment reveals that Luis is obese. His height is within normal limits for his age at 4’8”, but his weight is 102 lbs. His ideal body weight for his age and height is 62 lbs. His body mass index (BMI) is 22.9 which places him in the 97th percentile indicating that he has obesity.

1. Discuss the statistical data for childhood obesity in the United States.

2. There are a number of aspects that play a significant role in the development of childhood obesity. Please discuss how the following factors contribute to childhood obesity: Genetics and Pathophysiology of Obesity Essay

Biologic factors (genetics and pathophysiology of obesity)
Dietary intake (include cultural factors)
Environmental and behavioral factors (technology, socioeconomic status, sedentary lifestyle)
3. Luis was diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea secondary to obesity and physical inactivity.

Explain the correlation between obesity and obstructive sleep apnea
4. Discuss other health consequences for a child who is obese.

5. What recommendations would you provide to Luis and his mother as a focus for nutritional and behavioral treatment of Luis’s obesity? Genetics and Pathophysiology of Obesity Essay

6. Your patient education for Luis and his mother includes healthy, nutritional meal and snack planning. You will teach them how to use MyPlate on the ChooseMyPlate.gov website https://www.choosemyplate.gov/kids

Click on Online Tools. In the drop-down menu, choose MyPlate Plan and calculate Luis’s daily caloric intake
Explain other sources and activities on the ChooseMyPl

While lack of physical activity and increased intake of energy rich foods have been named as primary causes of obesity and overweight, there are other factors including hormonal and genetic influences that raise the risk of obesity.

Scientists have studied the important environmental and lifestyle causes of obesity as well as the genes that could increase the risk of obesity. Major efforts are now directed towards assessing the interactions of genes and environment that could be contributing to the rising number of obese individuals worldwide. Genetics and Pathophysiology of Obesity Essay

Obesity
Obesity is the result of accumulation of body fat over time that results from chronic energy imbalance that arises due to calories consumed exceeding calories expended.

Obesity raises the risk of several relatively common diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, arthritis, heart disease, and some cancers.

The “thrifty gene” hypothesis
Scientists have found several genes that regulate how the body captures, stores and releases energy from food. The origin of these genes is ancient. Genetics and Pathophysiology of Obesity Essay

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There is a concept of the “thrifty gene”. The theory suggests that the thrifty gene might have helped ancestors of present day humans survive occasional famines.

It is this same gene that is exposed to excess energy intake. It is now challenged by environments in which food is plentiful year round. This could result in increased storage of the energy in form of fat giving rise to the obesity epidemic. Genetics and Pathophysiology of Obesity Essay

Genes that influence obesity
However the thrifty gene might be part of a wide spectrum of genes influencing obesity. These genes can favor fat accumulation in a given environment. This may be proven by the fact that not all people living in industrialized countries with abundant food and physical inactivity are at risk of becoming obese. Genetics and Pathophysiology of Obesity Essay

Additionally not all obese people have the same body fat distribution or suffer the same health problems. This may be proven by racial or ethnic backgrounds as well as familial trends.

Genes determine regulation of appetite and satiety as well as tendency to be sedentary and a reduced capacity of using dietary fats as fuel and increased tendency of storing energy as fats. Genetics and Pathophysiology of Obesity Essay

Genetic studies of obese adults of different ethnic groups show that there are several associated genes in zones between chromosomes 2p, 7q, 10p and between q and p. The scans in obese children have shown that an association with a gene locus on chromosome 10p is the most consistent genetic finding.

Leptin
There is a hormone called leptin that is released from the adipocytes in amounts proportional to the body weight. This hormone reaches the brain and binds with its receptors and plays a role in body’s capacity to use and store energy. Genetics and Pathophysiology of Obesity Essay

In the long term it leads to a decrease in appetite and an increase in heat generation from energy both leading to a decrease in obesity. Some populations with specific genetic makeup may be deficient in leptin or its receptors.

Whether you are a researcher, a public health practitioner, clinician, or any professional or student with an interest in researching or evaluating weight-related outcomes, A Guide to Methods for Assessing Childhood Obesity will help you understand the most common adiposity assessment methods and which one is most appropriate for your particular objective. This User Guide is designed to assist users in selecting the most appropriate method of measuring adiposity in children when conducting population-level research and/or evaluation on obesity. Genetics and Pathophysiology of Obesity Essay