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By Matthew Rees

Food and Health Fact #20: Obesity and genetics

See all previously-published facts at the Food and Health Facts website 

A genetic basis for obesity has been discounted in several comprehensive studies. One such study, involving nearly 10,000 participants and published in the British Medical Journal in 2016, found that there was no association between having the FTO gene (known as the “obesity gene”) and being able to lose weight. According to the Harvard School of Public Health, “genetic predisposition is not destiny--many people who carry so-called ‘obesity genes’ do not become overweight. Rather, it seems that eating a healthy diet and getting enough exercise may counteract some of the gene-related obesity risk.”