Obesity has been associated with a state of low-grade chronic systemic inflammation, with interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-1, interleukin-8, and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) playing an important role and resulting in elevations of acute-phase proteins such as C-reactive protein (CRP).7 This evidence concerns the gene TNF and obesity due to melanocortin 4 receptor deficiency.