Why some dogs (and humans) are born hungry

The brain is the central regulator of appetite and body fatness, and genetic variation that affects body fatness tends to act in the brain.  One important site of variation is the POMC gene, which codes for a signaling molecule that suppresses food intake.  A new study shows that Labrador retrievers often carry an inactive version of the POMC gene, causing them to be highly food motivated, obesity-prone-- and perhaps more easily trainable. 

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My Recent Paper on Linoleic Acid in Adipose Tissue

Linoleic acid (LA) is the predominant polyunsaturated fat in the human diet, and it's most concentrated in seed oils such as corn oil.  LA accumulates in fat tissue, and as with many of the nutrients we eat, it is biologically active.  In a new paper, we systematically review the studies that have measured the LA concentration of fat tissue in US adults over time.  We show that the LA concentration of fat tissue has increased by approximately 136 percent over the last half century.

Susan Carlson, PhD

In 2011, I posted a graph on my blog in which I summarized some of the studies that have measured the LA content of fat tissue in US adults over time (1).  It showed a remarkably consistent upward trend.  Last year, a University of Kansas nutrition researcher named Susan Carlson contacted me and asked if I had published my findings in a scientific journal, because she wanted to cite the trend in one of her papers.  I said I hadn't published them, but that I would love to do so together.

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