Thinness--not obesity--has a genetic component.
The body mass of adoptees was compared with the body mass of both biologic and adoptive parents using data from the Danish Adoption Register. Chi-square analyses revealed that biologic heritability is small and is confined to thin, not obese body mass. It is probable that the inheritance of thin body mass constitutes a mild protective factor that mitigates against development of obesity caused by environmental factors.
Costanzo
P R
PR
Department of Psychology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27706.
Schiffman
S S
SS
D000300:Adoption; D001835:Body Weight; D002648:Child; D005190:Family; D005260:Female; D005826:Genetics, Medical; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000235:genetics*; D012042:Registries; D013851:Thinness / Q000235:genetics*