Giving Compass' Take:

• The Naked Scientists blog discusses recent research from the UK that identifies an "impaired" part of the brain in children of obese mothers, one that fails to signal to the body when it's full.

• Is there a way to fund more research into obesity, one of the biggest public health problems in the U.S.? 

• To learn more about fighting the obesity epidemic, click here. 

The part of the brain that makes you feel full could be impaired in babies of obese mothers, researchers believe — predisposing them to a lifetime of weight problems.

It is known that overweight women produce babies that are heavier — and long-term data is increasingly showing that this weight problem may worsen as the child gets older.

But the precise reason has remained a mystery. Is it because the fetus is just doing the same as the mother — converting the mother’s excessive calorie intake to fat? Or is something more complex at play?

Scientists at King’s College London (KCL), UK, working as part of the EU-funded EarlyNutrition project, have been exploring whether the hypothalamus, a part of the brain that produces many of the body’s essential hormones, might develop differently in fetuses growing in overweight mothers.

Read the full article about children of obese mothers inheriting weight issues by Georgia Mills at The Naked Scientist.