A doctor at the LSU Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge said she wants to study the consequences of short term weight fluctuation.

NEW ORLEANS — Has the stress of sheltering in place during the coronavirus outbreak caused you to put on some extra pounds that you plan to take off when things return to normal?

Well fluctuating, even temporarily, may hurt your long-term health, and a federally-funded study can help us understand why.

You’ve probably seen quarantine memes, reminding us that getting out of our exercise routines and working close to our home refrigerators could have weight consequences.

A doctor at the LSU Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge said she wants to study the consequences of short term weight fluctuation.

"There really haven’t been a ton of studies looking specifically at functions of the fat tissue," said Dr. Ursula White, Assistant Professor at LSU Pennington Biomedical Research Center.

People know they look and feel differently when they gain and lose weight, but what might be going on in our bodies when our weight goes up and down?

Dr. White wanted to know because fat does more than just store calories.

"It's secreting so many different hormones and factors that affects everything from appetite, your metabolism, your immune function, inflammation, all kinds of things that we know are very important to sustain health."

So, Dr. White is hoping people will join what’s called the EAT 2 study. You’ll be paid to gain a little weight for eight weeks, then they’ll help you lose weight with one-on-one professional advice.

"During the cycle of weight gain there’s this idea that perhaps there’s some changes in physiology that your body undergoes, that even if you lose weight afterward, you may not necessarily return to your initial state" she explained.

Studying weight is especially important since the effects of weight on health during this pandemic are coming to light.

"The statistics are definitely showing that people who have more underlying conditions are more susceptible to COVID-19," said Dr. White.

Now, she hopes young adults will join the study and help her unlock the answers to some questions.

The study is looking for men and women 18 to 42 years old, who are overweight but not obese. People could be compensated up to $1255.

E-mail clinicaltrials@pbrc.edu to see if you qualify, or call 225-763-3000.

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