Compared to lean women, obese women have impaired leptin signaling leading to reduced insulin sensitivity. The defective signaling appears to be related to leptin receptors in subcutaneous fat but not visceral fat.
Leptin signals body fat levels to the brain, affecting appetite. High leptin levels are usually found in obese people (due to high body fat levels) but the message may not get through to the brain (because of impaired leptin signaling).
There is a flaw in this statement, and it’s not so much that obese women have impaired leptin levels so much as what caused the leptin levels to decrease in the first place. The American woman, along with her family, has been duped into buying foods with HFCS, an altered sugar that shows up in everything. It’s even in foods labeled at “heart healthy” whole grain breads, yogurt, just about anything. It’s better to drink a beer than a soda now, and it’s all because of HFCS! Stop taking in the fake sugar, go organic, and you’ll find leptin levels will increase, no matter what size you are. Read any of these links to find out why this should be avoided, and if you must have a soda, get a Mexican or European one!