Scientists have discovered a gene that is linked to cholesterol and diabetes acts like a master switch that may control fats in the body. Scientists say that this can play a huge role in getting obesity help and cure for obesity-related diseases.

British researchers said in a study published in “Nature Genetics” that because fat plays an extremely significant role in our chances of getting metabolic diseases, the regulating gene may be targeted for the treatment of illnesses such as diabetes, obesity, and heart diseases.

Tim Spector, lead author of the study, said that their study is the first major research that shows how very minimal changes in a single master regulator gene can affect metabolic functions of other genes. They analyzed at least 20,000 genes in fat samples from 800 British female twins who volunteered for the study. After which they compared and confirmed their findings with 600 more fat samples from another group from Iceland.

As of the moment, one out of 10 adults in the world is obese. That is more than a billion people or 10% of the world’s total population. The numbers have increased, almost doubled, since the 1980s and it has shifted from rich nations only to even poor countries because of poor eating habits.

In the United States alone, $147 billion are spent to treat obesity-related diseases each year. That accounts for 10% of the country’s total medical spending. Cases of type-2 diabetes are also increasing in number as obesity rates grow.