There's more evidence linking obesity to a virus. Researchers from Louisiana
State University have found that when human stem cells were exposed to a common
virus they turned into fat cells and then got bigger.
While this may explain why some people put on weight, it doesn't explain most of
America's growing obesity problem. Researchers took fat tissue from people who
had liposuction, removed adult stem cells and exposed the cells to a virus in
the lab.
There, more than half the cells turned into fat cells and also accumulated fats.
In the end, if a viral cause of obesity can be shown, a vaccine could be
developed to prevent the virus from making people heavy. But it wouldn't help
people who already are obese.
