Insulin resistance and inflammatory signaling pathways modulated by high-fat diet

Obesity and associated disorders, of which incidences have increased dramatically worldwide in the last decades, give a serious threat to the current and future health of mankind on Earth. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that more than 1 billion adults worldwide are overweight and 300 million are clinically obese, based on the body mass index (BMI) equal to or over 30 kg/m2 [1]. Remarkably frightening is the similarly marked increase in obesity among children not only in Western countries, but also in the developing countries of the world [2,3]. Obesity is associated with many additional health problems, including increased risk of insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, nonalcoholic fatty liver, atherosclerosis, degenerative disorders such as dementia, some immune-mediated disorders like asthma, and certain cancers [4,5]. This cluster of obesity-related pathologies has also started to emerge in children at young ages, a manifestation that was implausible only a few decades ago.