{"id":136166,"date":"2022-02-16T16:23:00","date_gmt":"2022-02-16T15:23:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=136166"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:26:07","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:26:07","slug":"__trashed-8","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2022\/02\/16\/__trashed-8\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018In addition to the coronavirus pandemic, we\u2019ve had an obesity pandemic for years now\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLevien Willemse<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

What is your PhD thesis about?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI used questionnaires to study different types of stress in pregnant women and examined stress levels in children by measuring the amount of the stress hormone cortisol in their hair. I then tried to determine whether there is a correlation between stress and various types of cardiometabolic disorders in children, such as overweight, obesity and abnormal blood pressure and heart rate. We also looked at where exactly in the body the fat is located, because there is a stronger correlation between belly fat around the organs and diseases that manifest in later life than there is between subcutaneous fat and such diseases.<\/p>\n

\u201cScientists are also increasingly focusing on stress, because we\u2019re learning more and more about its potential negative impact. We also know that children who are overweight or have high blood pressure at a younger age are much more likely to suffer such disorders in adulthood. If you know what causes children to have such disorders, you may be able to prevent them in future.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t

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