Cross-Sectional Analysis of SNPs and Lifestyle Factors Associated with Obesity in Malay Adults

Obesity is a multifactorial disease and a growing health concern in Malaysia, with a prevalence of 23.1% amongst Malaysians. Despite high obesity rates in Southeast Asia, genetic studies involving Malay populations remain limited. To increase representation and understand obesity-related traits, this study investigated associations between selected SNPs, calorie intake, and BMI and HbA1c in an adult Malay cohort. Malay Participants were invited to participate in the study and were randomly (simple random sampling) selected from a list of staff at a public university in Malaysia. The participants were aged 30–60 and pregnant individuals were excluded. Dietary intake was assessed using a validated 7-day Dietary History Questionnaire (DHQ) administered by trained staff. Sociodemographic, clinical, and biochemical data were collected alongside genotyping using the MassARRAY platform. Regression models were adjusted for confounders: age, sex, calorie intake, and comorbidities such as hypercholesterolemia. Among the 389 participants, 67.4% were classified as people with obesity. GLP1R rs761386 was significantly associated with lower BMI values [adjusted β = -1.502, 95% CI: -2.791 to -0.213; p = 0.023]. Among physically active individuals (n = 224), GLP1R rs761386 and LEP rs7799039 were also associated with lower BMI [adjusted β = -2.335, 95% CI: -4.149 to -0.521; p = 0.012 and β = -2.648, 95% CI: -4.214 to -1.082; p = 0.001, respectively]. These findings suggest potential genetic contributions to obesity variation in Malays. Further validation in larger, longitudinal cohorts is recommended to clarify gene–lifestyle interactions and inform population-specific obesity interventions.