Stories
Slash Boxes
Comments

SoylentNews is people

posted by martyb on Thursday July 06 2017, @03:33PM   Printer-friendly
from the of-mice-and-mien dept.

A study has found that mice with an impaired sense of smell gain less weight than other mice, even when calorie consumption and exercise levels are the same:

To conduct the study, molecular biologist Andrew Dillin of the University of California, Berkeley, and colleagues turned to a variety of genetically altered mice. The scientists gave them regular doses of the diphtheria toxin—which causes a temporary loss of odor-sensing neurons—to suppress their sense of smell. They then fed the rodents either a normal diet or fatty foods—the mouse equivalent of cheesecake and pizza—that usually induce obesity.

After more than 3 months of noshing on regular chow, the odor-deprived rodents weighed slightly less than mice whose sense of smell was intact. In the group on the high-fat diet, however, the mice that couldn't smell weighed 16% less than animals that could [open, DOI: 10.1016/j.cmet.2017.06.015] [DX], which became obese. Losing the ability to smell also caused a different group of already-obese mice to lose weight, the researchers reveal today in Cell Metabolism. The obvious explanation for this effect—that mice with impaired olfaction were eating less—turned out to be wrong. There was no difference in the animals' food consumption. Nor were the slim rodents getting more exercise. They weren't moving around their cages more than their porky counterparts.


Original Submission

 
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.
Display Options Threshold/Breakthrough Mark All as Read Mark All as Unread
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
  • (Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 06 2017, @04:22PM (3 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 06 2017, @04:22PM (#535771)

    Sounds like you beat the leukemia, fingers crossed that it stays away.

    Another anecdote -- My 88 year old mother eats plenty, but is very thin. She lost most of her sense of smell ~15 years ago by using a zinc-based preparation (non-prescription) that was supposed to reduce frequency of getting common colds. In her experience, it did seem to help cut back on cold symptoms, but the permanent loss of smell appears to be a common side effect. That product is off the market now.

    Bonus for me and my sister -- Mom's cooking was always very good, but a little bland for our taste. Now she really spices things up so that she can taste something. Yummm!

    Starting Score:    0  points
    Moderation   +1  
       Interesting=1, Total=1
    Extra 'Interesting' Modifier   0  

    Total Score:   1  
  • (Score: 2) by frojack on Thursday July 06 2017, @06:16PM (2 children)

    by frojack (1554) on Thursday July 06 2017, @06:16PM (#535815) Journal

    AC living in basement with sister still forces 88 year old mom to cook their food. Film at 11.

    --
    No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.
    • (Score: 0, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 06 2017, @07:19PM (1 child)

      by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 06 2017, @07:19PM (#535837)

      Little do they realize their elderly mother knows AC and sister are incestuous lovers.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 06 2017, @09:18PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 06 2017, @09:18PM (#535879)

        Doubtless this is a common scenario...

        However, in this case my sister and I live nearby (I'm married, live two klicks to the east; partially disabled sister lives three klicks to the west in an apartment). We both spend some time helping our mother maintain her house. Mom prefers to remain in familiar surroundings instead of moving to some type of senior/assisted living. In return, she often cooks for us (and we have her over to our house for dinner too).