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Helping Overweight People with This Gene Variant
Diabetes Care; ePub 2016 Aug 31; Heianza, et al
A low-calorie, high-carbohydrate/low-fat diet helped overweight/obese individuals with the FGF21 gene variant improve body composition and abdominal obesity in a study involving 715 individuals.
Investigators genotyped FGF21 rs838147 in the obese/overweight participants, who were assigned to 1 of 4 diets. They performed DEXA scans to evaluate body composition. Among the results after 2 years:
• A low-carbohydrate/high-fat diet was significantly linked with less reduction in total fat mass and trunk fat in those with the C allele of rs838147.
• Conversely, a high-carbohydrate/low-fat diet in those with the C allele was linked with a greater reduction of waist circumference, total body fat mass, and trunk fat.
Heianza Y, Ma W, Huang T, et al. Macronutrient intake–associated FGF21 genotype modifies effects of weight-loss diets on 2-year changes of central adiposity and body composition: The POUNDS Lost Trial. [Published online ahead of print August 31, 2016]. Diabetes Care. doi:10.2337/dc16-1111.