A Harvard-affiliated hospital will study why so many lesbians are overweight, thanks to a $1.5 million grant from the federal government.

The grant was recently approved by the National Institutes of Health. It will allow Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a medical center affiliated with Harvard University, to examine an issue of “high public-health significance,” in the words of researchers.

Three quarters of gay women are obese, according to the grant for the study. But gay men have much lower obesity rates than heterosexual men—a discrepancy for which there is no scientific explanation, said researchers.

An NIH spokesperson claimed that the study would be in the best interests of public health.

“The study is examining reasons why the risk of obesity varies according to sexual orientation, in order to inform the development of future strategies to prevent obesity,” said NIH spokesperson Robert Bock, in a statement to CNS News.

The study could take as long as five years. But funding could run out before then, depending on how Congress decides to balance federal spending in the wake of the March 1st sequester.

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