While diet, lack of exercise and genetics play roles in childhood obesity, there may be a new item to add to that list: a virus. The possibility that you can “catch” obesity was born from research by Dr. Jeffrey Schwimmer, an associate professor of clinical pediatrics at the University of California at San Diego.

In a clinical study conducted through UCSD, Schwimmer and colleagues looked for evidence of adenovirus 36 (AD36). Adenovirus consists of 55 strains and is responsible for many colds and intestinal upsets. This particular strain infects immature cells and prompts them to rapidly develop, making them larger and capable of storing more fat.

The initial stage of the research included testing 124 children, half of which were obese. Results found that 78 percent of the children who tested positive for AD36 were obese, while only 22 percent of children with the virus were not obese. And while Dr. Schwimmer cautioned that this is only early-stage research, “it could have significant implications in the prevention and treatment of childhood obesity in the United States and around the world.

Schwimmer also found that those children with AD36 were substantially heavier than obese children without AD36. “They averaged 35 pounds more, no matter what their age,” he said.

Two recent reports, F as in Fat: How Obesity Threatens America’s Future 2010 and one by Kaiser Permanente  show that approximately one-third of our nation’s youth are overweight or obese and has almost tripled in the last three decades. Across America, 28 states showed a rise in childhood obesity, with the Southern states having a higher percentage of overweight children and adults.

Childhood obesity has become a hot button topic among health professionals and politicians alike and regularly makes headline news. Jamie Oliver, along with other notable chefs, is tackling the problem. First Lady Michelle Obama has launched a childhood obesity initiative, supported by Congress and those in the White House.