Hyderabad: A new study by researchers at the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CSIR-CCMB), Hyderabad, has revealed that lifestyle interventions or specific nutrient supplementation may provide more effective results for Indians with a genetic risk of obesity, as compared to genetic predictions used in European populations.

The study, led by Dr. Giriraj Ratan Chandak, focused on the genetic basis of obesity among Indians and highlighted significant differences between Indian and European populations. It found that many gene variants linked to obesity in Europeans do not have the same effect in Indians. This observation aligns with the different pattern of obesity seen in India, where individuals tend to have more central (abdominal) obesity.

The researchers used a Polygenic Risk Score (PRS), a genetic test that predicts obesity risk. They discovered that PRS is more accurate for individuals with European-like ancestry than for those with South Asian ancestry, including Indians.

The research team at CSIR-CCMB analysed genetic data from Indian individuals, including those with diabetes and those with normal glucose levels. These participants have been followed for nearly 20 years, allowing researchers to study the long-term impact of genetic factors on obesity.

The study also investigated how people with different levels of genetic risk responded to lifestyle interventions such as diet and exercise. It found that individuals with a higher genetic risk showed better initial responses to weight loss interventions but tended to regain weight more quickly once the interventions stopped.

“The observations made from this study are similar to the earlier results on height, where genetic variants identified in Europeans predicted lower risk in Indians, and environment-related modifications of genes play a larger role,” said Dr. Chandak. “It looks like lifestyle, diet and nutrition might be playing an equal or more important role in predicting obesity in Indians. So, for Indians, lifestyle solutions or specific nutrient supplementation in the background of genetic risk might yield better results.”

The findings are part of a global study involving 600 researchers across 500 institutions. The team used genetic data from the GIANT consortium and 23andMe, covering over 5 million individuals from various countries, including India.

One of the study’s significant outcomes was the development of a PRS that can predict adulthood obesity as early as five years of age. “What makes the score so powerful is its ability to predict, around the age of five, whether a child is likely to develop obesity in adulthood, well before other risk factors start to shape their weight later in childhood. Intervening at this point can have a huge impact,” said Assistant Professor Roelof Smit from the NNF Centre for Basic Metabolic Research (CBMR) at the University of Copenhagen, and lead author of the research published in Nature Medicine.

(With inputs from IANS)

Jyoti Kumari
Jyoti Kumari

Jyoti Kumari joined Medical Dialogues in 2025 as a Journalism Intern. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Mass Communication from the Delhi School of Journalism, University of Delhi. She is passionate about news reporting, content creation, social media, and emerging media trends.