Coronavirus is threatening to most people, but it is more dangerous for people with obesity. Findings show that people with an increased amount of leptin in their bodies have a harder time fighting off the virus. A study proves that the obesity hormone leptin could affect the body's response against SARS-CoV-2.
The lead author of the paper, Candida Rebello, Ph.D., noted the link between obesity and the virus. She said that the problem with people with obesity is that their leptin hormone levels are always high. She explained that it affects their bodies' response to COVID-19 infection.
Leptin hormone controls metabolism and hunger
The obesity hormone leptin is the one responsible for regulating our appetite and metabolism. It also controls the cells that help our bodies fight infection. Fat cells produce leptin. Lung tissues also do, but they only produce a little amount. It explains that the more fat a person has, the more leptin is found in their bodies.
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Dr. Rebello said that a high amount of leptin in the bodies affects the body's response to fight illness. The higher level of leptin one person has, the lesser the chance of a person to fight infection.
Obesity and other health issue equate to illness
Pennington Biomedical, Executive Director and a co-author of the study, John Kirwan, Ph.D., shared his thoughts. He said that if a person has many underlying health issues and obesity, this person has a hard time fighting off COVID infection.
He explained that the whole body, which includes the lungs, might be inflamed if a person has a lot of the hormone. Adding to that, he also said that the immune system of a person with an increased obesity hormone leptin is likely compromised. Kirwan also said that the lung capacity is also reduced.
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He said that if a person adds the virus to the equation, that person gets a recipe for disaster.
Developers of the COVID-19 vaccine should take note of this condition. They should also include the compromised immune system of people with obesity.
Future studies
The team said that leptin working together with the virus' proteins proves to change the subject's immune levels. Drugs that prevent inflammatory responses to the virus could be a potential avenue of treatment for the deadly disease.
Another thing that future researchers could study is how fat tissue could help activate fewer infection-fighting cells. They could also study why the cells that fight off infection die more quickly in people with obesity.
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Since there are no signs that the global health illness is going away soon, we should keep ourselves healthy to prevent getting sick. It is still important to wash our hands, wear face masks, and practice social distancing to keep the virus at bay. Further, it would be helpful if people would take care of their health by maintaining a healthy weight.
