Obese Kids: Genes and Junk Food Share Blame

Common childhood obesity -- the kind we usually blame on overindulgence and inactivity -- also has a genetic component, an international collaboration of researchers has concluded. Using genome-wide association techniques, the researchers showed that several genetic variants associated with adult obesity are also active in childhood obesity, according to Struan Grant of the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and colleagues. As well, the analysis found two new genetic variants that had not...Full Story