Study: Older Sisters At Great Risk of Obesity

A New Zealand study has found that firstborns are more insulin resistant than their siblings, which puts them at a higher risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity.

Why? The study authors theorize that less of the mother’s blood reaches the placenta during her first pregnancy because the blood vessels are narrower. This could also explain why firstborns tend to weigh less at birth than their siblings.

We should caution that this is an observational study, so a definitive cause and effect relationship between being firstborn and being overweight hasn’t been established.

Nonetheless, the findings are fascinating, and they raise an important question: How can you control your insulin resistance, and thereby control your risk of diabetes and obesity?

Someone forward you this email? No Sweat! Sign up here to get your own If you're having trouble viewing this email, click here Follow Us Study: Study: Older Sisters At Great Risk of Obesity A New Zealand study has found that firstborns are more insulin resistant than their siblings, which puts them at a higher risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity. Why? The study authors theorize that less of the mother’s blood reaches the placenta during her first pregnancy because the blood vessels are narrower. This could also explain why firstborns tend to weigh less at birth than their siblings. We should caution that this is an observational study, so a definitive cause and effect relationship between being firstborn and being overweight hasn’t been established. Nonetheless, the findings are fascinating, and they raise an important question: How can you control your insulin resistance, and thereby control your risk of diabetes and obesity? Nicholas English Content Manager of About.com Health Yep, You Can Can Burn More Fat By Manipulating Your Insulin READ NOW 3 Natural Remedies for Better Insulin Sensitivity    READ NOW How Does Insulin Control Obesity?    READ NOW How Would I Know If I Had Diabetes?    READ NOW Trending Now • 5 Reasons Your Kids Keep Getting Head Lice • Weight Gain and Aging: Don’t Be a Statistic • 10 Ways Breast Cancer Patients Should Cut Themselves Some Slack • Am I At Risk for Rheumatoid Arthritis? • 6 Questions to Help You Make Sense of Nephrotic Disease • Cryotherapy: Is Cold a Good Way to Treat Skin Cancer? • 5 Unbelievable Facts About Optimists Advertisement About Health  |  Follow Us You are receiving this newsletter because you subscribed to the About Health newsletter. If you wish to unsubscribe, please click here 1500 Broadway, 6th Floor, New York, NY, 10036 © 2015 About.com - All rights reserved. Privacy Policy.