Free Radicals Blamed for Increased Appetite

Researchers from the Yale School of Medicine in the United States have laid the blame for overeating squarely at the feet of “free radicals”, stating that the molecules are responsible for increased appetite. Free radicals are molecules inside the body that are linked with aging and tissue damage. The researchers analyzed brain circuits and found that these molecules are responsible for increased appetite. They also found that it was possible to suppress appetite by increasing the free radical levels.

However lead researcher Professor Tamas Horvath said that while it presents a great opportunity of reducing obesity, it was a “Catch-22” situation since increasing free radical levels inside the body also accelerated aging.

“It’s a Catch-22. On one hand, you must have these critical signalling molecules to stop eating. On the other hand, if exposed to them chronically, free radicals ­damage cells and promote aging”, Professor Horvath wrote in his report that has been published in the journal Nature Medicine.

Source-Medindia