Obesity: Hypothalamic Regulation of Food Intake

Obesity etiology encompasses several factors; many of which are related with nutrition and behavioral disorders, endocrine alterations, drug use, neurologic and genetic diseases. The intriguing “fat epidemic”, with its staggering ever-growing numbers, has been the focus of speculation regarding the true reasons for its expansion, since sedentary lifestyle and changes in diets with fat intake alone cannot fully explain it [1]. The clustering of dyslipidemia, hypertension and glucose intolerance, predominantly in overweight individuals, at risk of heart disease, has been of concern and this increasing prevalence is partly attributable to a lack of exercise and partly to the availability of high carorie palatable food. In addition, obesity is highly heritable, with the estimated genetic contribution ranging from 60-84%. Current estimates suggest that over 1 billion people are overweight and over 300 million people are obese.