An imbalance of female sex hormones
among men in Western nations may be contributing to high levels of male
obesity, according to a new research. Researchers from the University
of Adelaide suggest that obesity among Western men could be linked with
exposure to substances containing the female sex hormone oestrogen -
substances that are more often found in affluent societies, such as soy
products and plastics. The research was conducted by University of
Adelaide medical student James Grantham and co-authored by Professor
Maciej Henneberg, Wood Jones Professor of Anthropological and
Comparative Anatomy. Grantham compared obesity rates among men and
women from around the world with measures such as Gross Domestic Product
to determine the impact of affluence on obesity. He found that while
it was normal for women in the developing world to have significantly
greater levels of obesity than men, the developed world offers quite a
different picture. "Hormonally driven weight gain occurs more
significantly in females than in males, and this is very clear when we
look at the rates of obesity in the developing world," Grantham said.
"However, in the Western world, such as in the United States, Europe and
Australia, the rates of obesity between men and women are much closer.
In some Western nations, male obesity is greater than female obesity.
"While poor diet is no doubt to blame, we believe there is more to it
than simply a high caloric intake," Grantham said. "Exposure to
oestrogen is known to cause weight gain, primarily through thyroid
inhibition and modulation of the hypothalamus," added Henneberg. "Soy
products contain xenoestrogens, and we are concerned that in societies
with a high dietary saturation of soy, such as the United States, this
could be working to 'feminise' the males. "This would allow men in
those communities to artificially imitate the female pattern of weight
gain. "Another well-established source of xenoestrogen is polyvinyl
chloride, known as PVC. This product is in prominent use in most wealthy
countries, from plastic medical devices to piping for our water
supplies," said Henneberg. Henneberg said micro-evolutionary changes
may be occurring within Western societies that could also be leading to
changes in testosterone and oestrogen in men. "This would certainly
explain the various concerns about sperm count reductions among men in
developed nations," he said. The paper was published in the journal
PLOS ONE.
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