Obesity and Weight Loss Hormone Ghrelin

Ghrelin is a hormone produced by the stomach and pancreas with the function of stimulating hunger to protect against the fat loss as a result of thousand years in protecting the survival of human species. Its levels increase before meals and decrease after meals. As to its unique activity, many researchers have tried to find a way to block the stimulation of this hormone for weight loss.

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In the study of (a) changes in ghrelin and peptide YY (PYY) concentrations during a weight reduction programme and (b) baseline ghrelin and PYY levels during a weight reduction programme with 15 normal-weight teenagers and 32 severely obese adolescents (BMI z score = 4.1), researchers found that obese teenagers had lower ghrelin and PYY concentrations than normal-weight adolescents (P < 0.05). Moreover, they showed significantly higher leptin, insulin levels and homeostasis model assessment (HOMA) (P < 0.0001).). During the lifestyle modification, there was a significant decrease in body weight among obese teenagers, associated with an increase in ghrelin (apparent from month 6; P < 0.05), a decrease in leptin (from month 3; P < 0.05) and a decrease in insulin and HOMA (from month 3; P < 0.0001), without any significant change in PYY.
Researchers concluded that In adolescents with severe obesity, a long-term combination of supervised aerobic exercises and a balanced diet led to weight reduction and increased ghrelin concentrations, without any change in PYY concentrations. Moreover, baseline PYY concentrations might be considered as predictors of weight loss. (1)



(1) "Ghrelin and PYY levels in adolescents with severe obesity: effects of weight loss induced by long-term exercise training and modified food habits." by Gueugnon C, Mougin F, Nguyen NU, Bouhaddi M, Nicolet-Guénat M, Dumoulin G. posted in PubMed