The burden of whites: alcoholism, obesity, depression

Europeans are evolutionarily programmed for obesity and alcoholismAnna Barabash, Infox.ru

Westerners may be genetically programmed to consume fatty foods and alcohol in much larger volumes than people in the East. Researchers from the University of Aberdeen have discovered a genetic "switch" (the part of DNA that turns a gene on and off) that controls the gene for the hormone galanine. This hormone is produced by the hypothalamus (the area of the brain that regulates appetite and thirst). Under its influence, the study says, a person with hunger and thirst prefers fatty foods and alcohol. Researchers note that galanin is produced not only by the hypothalamus, but also by the amygdala, which is responsible for fear, anxiety, tension. Probably, the concentration of this substance has a certain effect on the emotional state of a person and, possibly, provokes the development of depression. (Have Europeans evolved to be fat depressed alcoholics?)

As the researchers found out, in Asians, this switch adjusts the gene to a lower level of work than in Europeans. According to the author of the study, Dr. Mackenzie (Alasdair MacKenzie), "perhaps this is due to the fact that in a colder European climate, people who ate fatty foods and drank alcohol were more likely to survive in harsh winters. It is not for nothing that brewing and dairy production were so developed in the West in the Middle Ages, that is, such food that is literally "stuffed" with calories. Those of the Europeans who did not have this gene, or it did not work "at full capacity", could not survive the cold. As a result, those who were doomed by evolution to obesity and alcohol addiction survived," writes the Journal of Neuropsychopharmocology (Davidson et al., Differential Activity by Polymorphic Variants of a Remote Enhancer that Supports Galanin Expression in the Hypothalamus and Amygdala: Implications for Obesity, Depression and Alcoholism).

And if life expectancy had remained the same – 30-40 years – such a model of eating behavior would not have had time to lead to any negative consequences. By this age, people simply did not have time to gain excess weight and acquire alcohol dependence, the study says. Now the obesity epidemic is practically the number one problem for the health of Europeans and Americans. Since the 70s of the last century, doctors have noted the constant spread of this disease. Although, the researchers note, Asians who are evolutionarily not prone to overweight and alcohol abuse may face the same problems if they imitate the Western model of eating behavior.

Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru19.07.2011