Genes determine whether the Christmas surplus takes a hold either on women's hips or waist. Photo: Sylke Selzer

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Pear or Apple Type – With Women it's a Question of Genes

Sugar-roasted almonds, gingerbread hearts, roast goose: The Christmas season is also a season of indulging. One or two kilos may remain put after the holidays but how surplus weight affects the risk for diabetes and cardiovascular diseases also depends on where the fat settles: The so-called pear type with more fat around the hips is healthier than the apple type where the fat accumulates around the waist. An international team of researchers under the leadership of the Helmholtz Centre Munich and the University Clinic Regensburg have found out that genetic factors are responsible for the distribution of fat in particular in the case of women. Nearly 300 scientists examined over two million gene variants in around 200,000 people and found a number of genetic effects influencing the distribution of body fat and which occur more forcibly or only in women. Thus no diet can change the shape of the female waist for the genes decide whether it is the pear or apple shape.

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