Of those, more than 600 million were obese.
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Among a group of almost 9,000 people who were enrolled in 11 studies in which they agreed to genetic analysis and were randomly assigned to a variety of weight loss methods, including diet, exercise or drug-based therapies, Mathers found the answer was a surprising no.
The obesity-associated FTO gene, MC4R, and TMEM18 have shown the greatest association.
One study out of the Columbia University Medical Center says the FTO gene affects the functions of the primary cilium, a hair-like appendage on the brain and other cells.
Individuals with two copies of the FTO minor allele weigh an average of 3 kilograms more and have a 1.7-fold increased chance of being obese, compared with those who have two copies of the lower risk allele.
While there are several other obesity-related genes to be taken into account, The Guardian reports that the FTO gene is believed to increase the appeal of foods high in calories. In total, the team analyzed nearly 10,000 participants who took part in eight randomized control trials.
Changes in body mass index, body weight, and waist circumference by FTO genotype did not differ by intervention type, intervention length, ethnicity, sample size, sex, or baseline body mass index and age category.
However, the researchers found no relation between FTO and the ability to lose weight.
People who carry a variant in the so-called obesity gene, FTO, react just as well to diet and exercise as those without it, a research paper said Wednesday.
“For public health professionals, it means that the adverse effects of the FTO genotype on weight gain are not an impediment to weight loss interventions”.
For the latest study in the BMJ an global team of researchers, led by Newcastle University, set out to assess the relation between the FTO gene and weight-loss interventions by analysing data from 8 randomised control trials involving 9,563 participants.
In a linked editorial, Dr Alison Tedstone, chief nutritionist at Public Health England, says the causes of obesity are multiple and complex, but current evidence suggests they have little to do with gene profiles. In the article – “Obesity treatment – are personalized approaches missing the point?” – she reminds us that the causes and solutions of obesity are varied and complex, but that the influence of gene profiles does not now have the backing of evidence. And there were no differences among people with and without the FTO variant and their weight loss whether they tried dieting, exercise or weight-loss drugs.
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Weight loss strategies or genetic interventions? Instead, she says “a rebalancing of research towards whole systems approaches including environmental drivers may be of greater benefit to the population in the long term”.
