For years we have been hearing from women who claimed that they put on weight following the menopause but there was no scientific explanation why this might be the case. Following the publication of some interesting research in the US we now might just have the answer. It appears that oestrogen receptors in the hypothalamus of the brain act as master switches which regulate appetite, fat distribution and energy expenditure. The research was the result of animal experiments where the oestrogen receptors in this region of the brain were switched off and the animals suddenly began to eat more food, expend less energy and add body weight – particularly around the middle region.
An area of the hypothalamus called the ventromedial nucleus has already been explored using gene silencing techniques to examine the effects of deactivating oestrogen receptors in this region. The result showed that there was a drop in the metabolic rate and energy levels fell. The animals gained weight without an increase in calorie consumption.
The research team now proposes to explore the arcuate nucleus region and, based on the earlier research where the entire oestrogen receptor population in the hypothalamus was switch off, they expect that when the receptors are switched off in this region, the animals’ appetites will increase.