Physiologic and Endocrine Correlates of Overweightness in African Americans and Caucasians
Abstract
Obesity has reached epidemic levels and yet the incidence continues to rise. This study examines the hypothesis that obesity may reflect a dysfunction of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis in response to stressors. African American persons are at greatest risk, but reasons for this difference are unknown. The authors will study 127 men and women of Caucasian and African American ethnicity to examine their responses to physiologic stressors: exercise and ingestion of a meal. The HPA axis will be studied in some detail by using two stressor paradigms and two steroid regimens. They expect to be able to detect subtle differences in HPA axis reactivity in obese individuals that might contribute to morbidity and perhaps even make individuals resistant to therapeutic interventions. So far they have enrolled 160 participants. Of those, 123 subjects have completed the study and 4 are in progress; 33 subjects have dropped out. Data collection and analyses are proceeding on schedule. Two abstracts were presented in 2006, one was presented in 2007, and one was submitted and accepted for presentation in the Summer of 2008. The authors are on schedule for all study milestones and look forward to being able to answer the important questions regarding the potential role of the HPA axis in obesity.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 01, 2008
- Accession Number
- ADA484264
Entities
People
- Patricia A. Deuster
Organizations
- Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine