Posted on March 22, 2004 at 11:25 a.m.
BIRMINGHAM, AL — Caloric intake and body weight independently affect longevity, according to a recent animal study led by David B. Allison, Ph.D., professor of public health with the department of biostatistics at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) and head of UAB’s Section on Statistical Genetics. Details of study are published in the March 2004 issue of International Journal of Obesity, a journal of the Nature Publishing Group.
“Studies in a variety of species have shown that reducing caloric intake leads to a decrease in body weight and a decrease in mortality rate,” Allison said. “It’s also well established that obesity leads to earlier mortality. Therefore, it may seem reasonable to speculate that caloric restriction decreases rate of mortality by reducing body weight or body fat, however, not all researchers agree.”
The study relied on raw data from an earlier study in which 1,200 rodents were randomly assigned to one of 12 dietary regimens. Initially, all 12 groups were given free access to food. During the remaining two stages of the study, two groups had the same diet and accessibility to food while 10 groups had different diets, different accessibility to food or both.
Statistical analysis of primary measures — body weight, food consumption and age at death — revealed both caloric restriction and body weight are related to longevity. “We found that both caloric restriction and body weight independently affect mortality rate and that body weight partially, but not fully, accounts for the effect of caloric restriction on mortality rate.”
Results add to a growing storehouse of knowledge about the effects of caloric restriction, body weight and body fat on longevity. Currently UAB researchers are involved in several ongoing related studies investigating the link between obesity and aging. Among these studies, two collaborate efforts with nationally renowned researchers who will be speaking at UAB this month.
Richard Weindruch, Ph.D., research director with the department of medicine’s Section of Geriatrics and Gerontology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a collaborator on this study, will speak at 4 p.m. on March 23, 2004, in room 121 of UAB’s Ryals Public Health Building.
Daniel Pomp, Ph.D., professor with the department of animal science at University of Nebraska — Lincoln, will speak at 11 a.m. on March 24, 2004, in room 121 of UAB’s Ryals Public Health Building. He will discuss genetic predisposition towards obesity.
Other UAB researchers who collaborated on the published study are Chenxi Wang, M.D.; Prinal Trivedi; Jose Fernandez, Ph.D.; and Christopher Coffey, Ph.D. For information about this study, ongoing research or upcoming seminars hosted by UAB’s Section on Statistical Genetics, please visit the section’s Web site at www.ssg.uab.edu or contact Richard Sarver at (205) 975-9169 or by e-mail at rsarver@uab.edu.