Are people destined to be fat because of a genetic predisposition? This is our internal caveman, helps to increase the volume? What can we do to make genetics work for us, not against it?
It is important to know why you are getting. When you know the main causes fat depositionYou can take this information and apply it to fat loss. Knowing how and why this happens is the first step to changing the outcome.
One of the main causes of obesity - you eat more than you can burn. This may be a too simplified example, but it is.
But what are the sources of fat storage in your body? Why are fats stored so easily?
Our internal "Caveman"
Our oldest ancestors did not go to the supermarket to get their food. They did not go to the nearest fast food place to eat as soon as they got hungry. They did not sit at the table all day. They did not drive, they always and everywhere went, ran, swam.
The daily lives of the first people to whom we owe our genetics have been consumed with getting enough food to survive. In order to eat, they had to: hunt or collect. As you can imagine, a lot of calories were burned for this.
With the beginning of agriculture, people no longer needed to seek out animals, or berries, fruits. They could stay in one place and grow it. Animals were domesticated. They could sell these foods, exchange for necessary goods or services produced by other people. This is known as the agricultural revolution, and this was the beginning of our society.
Agriculture has become the main means of producing food in the world. The greatest technical progress occurred in the 1900s. We progressed as a society, manual labor was less in demand. Machines began to replace people where hard work was needed. This led to less and less physical activity of an increasing number of people. This was the beginning of a modern overweight epidemic.
To sum up: nowadays, food has become plentiful and easily accessible, and physical activity is no longer part of everyday life.
Thank you, our ancestors
The body and the human body today is the same as the human body 5,000 years ago. But! our body was successfully adapted to continuous cycles - feast and hunger. How did it adapt? The body has adapted, putting aside fat during the feast.
Storing a large amount of fat in fact protects the body from inevitable hunger when food is absent. With the accumulation of a large amount of energy, our ancestors were able to survive in harsh conditions and flourish. During the cold season, mostly people survived, full of people, more precisely, people with fat reserves.
Our body is programmed to this need for preservation, although, due to the high availability of food, people rarely need it. It is for this reason that fats are easily deposited, and the body hardly assimilates it. Our body protects itself from hunger, because it thinks that sooner or later it will come.
Combining this need for storing fat and the easy availability of high-calorie foods with reduced physical activity, we get the answer to the question: why do people get fat?
Diet = hunger
If you have ever been on a diet, you are probably aware that rapid weight loss first occurs, then a gradual slowdown, and sometimes a complete loss of weight loss after several weeks of hunger strike.
For this you can also thank our ancestors. When you drastically reduce your calorie intake (for example, when you start a diet) your body begins to use stored fat, faster. Your metabolism is still high and you lose weight. The trouble is, our body cannot distinguish the lack of available food known as hunger and voluntary food reduction i. diet. For our body, “diet = hunger”. After a short period of time, our body falls into a panic state. You lose your energy reserves too quickly, and your body will do everything possible to slow down or stop it.
- The first thing that happens when your metabolism slows down. You will not burn many calories during the day, no matter how much you eat or follow.
- The next thing that happens is your body will start burning muscle tissue. Muscles are very metabolically active and require a lot of calories to support them. Our body knows this, and in its quest to reduce energy costs, it will begin to destroy muscle tissue. Our body will convert our muscles into energy in order to keep their fat reserves.
This vicious cycle will continue each time you reduce your calorie intake (diet) in order to compensate for a slower metabolism. Your body will slow down your metabolism even more and will destroy even more muscle tissue to reduce energy intake.
How to avoid this problem?
There are several ways to solve a problem:
- Calorie Reduction Should Be Slow. If you are trying to lose fat, do not reduce food intake quickly. Your body will panic, causing your metabolism to slow down.
- Mix calorie your diet. Do not eat the same, and the same amount every day. Eat a little more on some days, and a little less on other days. This is what you do in the long run, which will really affect your results.
- Physicalexercises. Since for most people everyday life is not associated with physical exertion, you should exercise regularly. This will help burn calories and give your body an incentive to maintain muscle mass.
- Reduce consumption of processed foods (sausage, pate, cake, etc.). Your body can not always cope with such products. Try to eat foods that are closer to their natural state (potatoes in husks, apples, lean meat, etc.)
Remember that your body is an extremely efficient machine for storing fat, but you have knowledge of biology, anatomy, use your knowledge for your own benefit and get the desired result.
A huge number of people are interested in why they grow stout or get fat? The main causes of this phenomenon are the following: a sedentary (or just sedentary) life image, numerous diseases, an improper diet. However, what exactly are the processes occurring in the body? In order to more specifically delve into this issue, find out for a start, why and how is the direct accumulation of fat.
In our body, in our body there is nothing superfluous - everything is functional. Even our hated fat deposits play a rather big role in our body and help it to fully function. Their main task is to store energy in the event of hunger, lack of food. Another important task is the elementary regulation of body temperature. Just look at polar bears, walruses, or other animals that spend quite a long time under cold water. Thanks to such a thick layer of fat, they are protected from hypothermia better than any fur coat. This is where the question arises - so why are those people who feel neither hunger nor hypothermia get fat?
Fats are deposited in lipocytes (fat cells). In this case, fats in sufficient quantities enter the body along with the consumed food, where they can be present in ready-made form or synthesized from the incoming glucose. Obesity is of two kinds. With one of them, the number of lipocytes does not increase, but the amount of stored fat just increases slightly (this type of obesity is called hypertrophic). In another form, the fat cell begins to actively multiply (this type of obesity is hypercellular).
The fact is that for some reason the process of fat synthesis begins to dominate the processes of fat breakdown and the output of these fats from fat cells. Well, that person does not use as much energy as he consumes fat! However, our body is no longer able to stop or even just slow down the process of storing fat. And in the end we get obesity or just get fat.
It happens that the process of disintegration and synthesis of fats is turned on and off by some hormones. That is why the imbalance of the hormonal environment can also lead to the appearance of excess weight or obesity. Cortisol (adrenal hormone) and adrenaline can trigger the process of removing fat from cells, and insulin can slow down these processes. Often, patients begin to get fat fast enough because the amount of insulin in the blood rises.
Estrogens and the female hormone prolactin begin to activate the process of formation of fatty acid (lipogenesis). As a result of the excess of these hormones, fats begin to be deposited in the fatty tissue.
The role of the main energy source is glucose. It replaces fats, which is why they do not have time to decay so actively as they would like to have a sweet tooth. And glucose can inhibit the breakdown of fatty acids by inhibiting enzymes that are responsible for the transfer of these enzymes into energy cells. At the same time, sugar begins to activate the formation of fatty acids. Speaking simply enough, glucose begins to act on the body by call - all are included, no one comes out!
So that is why the main part of people who eat flour and sweet foods in abundance, get better and get fat. As for flour products, the flour contains a lot of starch and other components, which contain a lot of glucose. These components, falling into the intestine, fall apart, resulting in the release of glucose itself, after which it is absorbed into the blood. Yes, we need glucose, because it is the most valuable supplier of energy, but at the same time it is also the killer of slender bodies, if it is consumed uncontrollably.
Everything that we have just told you may or may not be particularly accessible, is too replete with facts and concepts, but in essence it is not blurry. And if to sum up, among all the main reasons for speeding weight gain are four - sedentary life, hormonal disruptions, heredity, high glucose and fat in the food consumed.
Today, everyone aspires to become thin, because modern ideals of beauty, standards require it. Fifty years ago, ladies' figures in “body” were in fashion. Like then, today a complete woman will always find her admirer, because not everyone is looking at the body, there are many people who find the inner content of a person more important than his appearance. So it's good to be complete or bad - you decide. We only advise to keep yourself under control, so as not to worsen the condition of your body and the work of all its systems. If you are always guided by the principles of healthy eating, if you lead a healthy lifestyle, your fullness, most likely, will not bring negative consequences. However, you can run your weight to a state where you may experience problems not only with the opposite sex, but also with your own health. Here you need to start to act, save yourself. But trying to get rid of excess weight should be very careful, without fanaticism, as too zealous actions for its loss can lead to the same disastrous consequences as its set. The ideal is considered to lose weight with the help of a specialist who will constantly monitor you and your condition during the period of dropping excess weight. If you act independently, it is quite possible that the power of your organism will be undermined by the same risk.
Keep in mind that fast weight gain most often indicates that some painful processes occur in your body that are deviated from the norm.
- Low physical activity.
- Genetic predisposition.
- Diseases leading to a decrease in metabolism.
- Nevertheless, the main role is assigned to the first two groups.
The overweight set is caused, first of all, by the imbalance between the energy consumed from food and its expenditure on various physiological processes in the body.
Why do people get fat?
If energy is consumed less than enters the body, then its surplus is deposited as if in reserve. Therefore, in order to reduce body weight, it is necessary to expend more energy than it does, using fatty “depot” of the body for this purpose.
It would seem that everything is very simple - eat less and move more, and everything will work out for you. This is true, but to achieve significant positive results and, most importantly, not everyone can keep them. Therefore, it is necessary not only to follow the recommendations on proper nutrition and physical exertion, but also, which is equally important, to understand: why were those extra pounds gained? Excessive food intake, poor eating habits and low physical activity are the main causes of overweight. Almost everyone knows this.
But what else factors contribute to weight gain and the development of obesity?
- Age plays an important role in this.
Allocate a special type of obesity-age. It has been established that the maximum caloric need is observed in a person aged about 25–30 years. In the future, there is a decrease in the intensity of metabolic processes in the body to 3% annually.
And, if you do not change the diet and diet with age, gradually and imperceptibly, this can lead to an increase in body weight.
After 30 years in the absence of active physical activity, muscle mass decreases at a rate of about 250 g per year. At the same time, fat starts to accumulate. And since muscular tissue has a higher metabolic rate and, consequently, consumes more energy, a decrease in its mass leads to a decrease in energy exchange and, as a result, to the deposition and accumulation of fat mass.
In addition, age-related obesity is associated with impaired activity of a number of brain centers, including the hunger center. With age, an increasing amount of food is needed to satisfy hunger. Very often, imperceptibly, many people start to eat more than they need, that is, they overeat.
This is also associated with an age-related decrease in the sensitivity of oral receptors. Therefore, it is necessary to add more salt and other spices to the products, creating a taste of life for yourself, and the appetite increases, and the fluid is significantly retained in the body, creating conditions for gaining extra pounds.
Moreover, over the years, the activity of the thyroid gland, which produces hormones involved in metabolism, gradually decreases.
All this means that with age, in order to maintain a stable body mass, it is required to reduce food intake, which carries excess energy. This will be one of the main keys to success.
It must be remembered that another reason for the increase in body weight in people older than 30 years may be not so much overeating, as reducing energy costs and energy requirements, due to a decrease in metabolic rate. Due to the fact that muscle mass progressively decreases with age, much less energy is required to maintain muscle tone, which is why much less energy is expended, and consequently, a predisposition to fat deposition occurs.
It means that it is required to constantly “recharge” the muscles with the help of additional physical activities, so that they do not decrease in volume and their vitality does not decrease.
- More often women are suffering from overweight.
Why is this happening?
During the life of a woman, hormonal changes take place several times in her body, and all these periods, as a rule, are accompanied by a noticeable weight gain. It has long been noticed that the sooner the girl has her first menstruation, the more likely it is that she will be overweight in adulthood. So, among thirty-year-old women who have had early puberty, overweight is observed in 26% of cases, and in late cases - only in 15%. The difference is noticeable! Moreover, it is during puberty that substantial weight gain occurs, both in boys and girls.
The second period in a woman’s life when hormonal changes are observed is pregnancy. Usually during pregnancy at the time of birth the weight gain ranges from 11 to 16 kg, and each pregnancy adds an extra 2-3 kg. But even more important is not how many kilograms a woman gains for pregnancy, but the speed with which this happens. If body weight has increased mainly in the first trimester, it means that the bulk of the energy went not to the growth of the fetus, but deposited in the fat “depot” of the expectant mother. The optimal increase in the first trimester, doctors consider no more than 2 kilograms. After childbirth, normally, there is a gradual decrease in body weight, which is observed already during the period of breastfeeding.
Some restriction in the caloric content of the food of a young mother does not affect the ability to fully breastfeed. A full recovery of the initial body weight can occur in 6-12 months.
However, a sedentary lifestyle, eating high-calorie foods to maintain lactation, and the constant eating up for young children sometimes contribute to even greater weight gain.
The third period of significant weight gain occurs during menopause. Of course, the reason for this also lies in hormonal changes. No wonder more than half of women of fifty years of age are overweight.
It is known that part of the fat goes to the construction of estrogen. When these hormones become smaller, the fat begins to be deposited in the fat folds, and more often in the upper type: the figure gradually begins to take on the shape of an apple. Fat is stored in the abdominal cavity, which can lead to comorbidities in the form of cardiovascular diseases and type 2 diabetes.
- The development of obesity, sometimes significantly pronounced, is associated with many diseases.
This is, first of all, some endocrine diseases and especially hypothyroidism, that is, a disease of the thyroid gland, in which the activity of the hormones produced by it is reduced. Therefore, it is recommended that all overweight people conduct a study of thyroid hormones and, if necessary, consult an endocrinologist.
If you are taking hormonal drugs (for example, for the treatment of asthma, birth control pills, etc.), then this may also be a reason for gaining excess weight.
Therefore, when reaching the elegant age, women should maximally monitor their diet, reducing its caloric content, and increase physical activity, so as not to gain extra pounds, and with them health problems.
Consider also a few myths about why do people get fat:
- Myth 1: genetic predisposition
In society, myths about the causes of overweight persist. One of them is the so-called genetic predisposition.
“Since my parents are full, it means that I must be like that, there's nothing you can do.” A very convenient explanation, first of all for oneself — no need to strain yourself, while others can only sympathize.
But more often than not, this is not a real cause, but a delusion! Indeed, it is now absolutely certain that only less than 2% of cases of obesity are associated with genetically inherited metabolic disorders or hormonal imbalances.
“But what about family cases of obesity?” - you ask. So - genetics here, as a rule, has nothing to do with it. The reason is improper eating behavior and gastronomic habits in the child’s environment, which are “inherited”. 80% of children who have both parents are overweight, also risk becoming obese with age - and again, in most cases, not because of genetics. If parents have a normal weight, then their offspring only in 14% of cases become full.
Indeed, we can inherit the rate of metabolic processes in the body and thus only a predisposition to overweight. But whether this predisposition is realized or not will depend on the lifestyle: first of all, the nature of nutrition and physical activity.
- Myth 2: Smoking
Another myth is associated with weight gain after quitting smoking. In fact, he is only partly a myth. Indeed, weight gain is sometimes significant, but not always. A person who has quit smoking abruptly can gain up to 5 extra pounds within a few months. But do not be discouraged! If you take control of your food regime and the amount of food consumed, during the year the weight usually returns to the original.
Why does an increase in body weight in quit smoking occur? There are several reasons for this.
First, the metabolic processes in the smoker’s body proceed at an accelerated rate necessary to neutralize the poison, which the body constantly poisons during smoking. And this is about 150 kcal per pack a day. Agree, a lot, if you consider that it is exactly what is needed to do the work in your garden or gymnastic exercises for a whole hour.
Nothing but a convenient way out for the lazy and not caring about their health, isn’t it?
Secondly, the smoker's appetite is significantly reduced, since nicotine suppresses taste buds, and smokers perceive less of the smell and taste of food. In addition, under the influence of nicotine, the liver secretes glycogen, which suppresses hunger.
Finally, smoking saves from boredom and stress. After all, cigarettes and food are a means of social protection from difficult life situations.
Emotional stress eaters seize up stress and smokers simply smoke. After all, nicotine increases the concentration of dopamine in the brain, which helps to improve mood.
The same happens when eating sweets. Cigarette and candy - antidepressants, as, indeed, and alcohol. That is why when you quit smoking there is a temptation to replace cigarettes with sweets.
In addition, while you are smoking, both your hands and your mouth are occupied, and this is a kind of food substitution. Therefore, the body of a former smoker needs some time to adapt. But it is better to plan the situation in advance, for example, 2-4 weeks, in order to get used to the thought and fully realize that smoking will soon be over. And at this time, to begin to increase energy consumption so as to compensate in the future those 150-200 kcal, which you will no longer burn due to nicotine.
It is quite obvious that most smokers will need to change their gastronomic habits: you need to be careful in choosing food and control your appetite.
The problem of excess weight today worries many people. Therefore, in the article on why people are getting fat, we decided not only to state the reasons for gaining excess weight, but also to give brief recommendations on what to do in this or that case. Of course, there are indicated those cases when it is necessary to consult with a doctor or an experienced nutritionist.
Malnutrition
This reason always comes at number one when it comes to such a problem as obesity. At the same time, very often people who gain weight in this way, blame their predisposition to corpulence and stubbornly refuse to face the facts. Malnutrition is not only in the use of certain products, but, above all, in non-compliance with the diet. It is well known that to maintain a normal weight you need to eat several times a day (4 to 6 times) in small portions. If you eat, as they say, rarely, but aptly, the body simply can not cope with so many different substances, and as a result there is a metabolic disorder, leading, among other things, to gaining excess weight. Therefore, the advice: eat a little better, but more often than many times and rarely. Now let's talk about what products get fat. In order not to gain excess weight, it is necessary mainly to limit the consumption of sweets, since sugar is one of the main causes of overweight. Also, do not eat a lot of smoked meats, salty and fatty foods. But in order to lose weight, try to eat more fruits and vegetables that are rich in fiber, which regulates and improves the normal metabolism in the body. Men should also limit their intake of beer, as in large quantities it can lead to serious weight gain.
Lack of movement
Those who suffer from lack of physical activity should seriously consider increasing their physical activity, such as walking after work, doing some exercises during the working day, etc. As a rule, the lack of movement can gradually lead to a serious weight gain. This affects office workers, public servants engaged in paperwork, drivers and people of other professions who have to sit a lot. In the absence of regular physical exertion in the body, stagnation occurs and, as a result, the metabolism is disturbed, which leads to the accumulation of fat deposits, and also to a general deterioration of well-being. Moreover, this applies equally to women and men. If, together with low physical activity, you also eat incorrectly, then you should change your meal schedule and diet. This also can be attributed to those cases where a person was engaged in some rather active physical activity, and then suddenly quit. This could be, for example, sports (weightlifting or wrestling, football or cycling), working in security agencies or serving in the army. If an athlete or soldier dramatically reduces the load, the body can react completely unpredictable, and often - a serious weight gain. Recommendations for such people can serve as a gradual reduction in workloads. In this case, the transition to a normal life rhythm will occur most painlessly. However, since the body has become accustomed to stress, it is still necessary to give them to it, albeit in limited quantities. It is necessary, first of all, for the normal functioning of the cardiovascular and respiratory systems.
Chronic diseases, heredity
Often the cause of what get fat, can serve any chronic disease: diabetes, cardiovascular diseases. In this case, it is imperative to seek the help of qualified medical professionals. They do not make jokes with such diseases; here we need a comprehensive examination, including tests, so that we can make recommendations on the correct treatment of obesity - this unpleasant side effect of such diseases. As for heredity, some scientists argue that there is a so-called obesity gene. But, on the other hand, if the obesity gene really existed, then no methods would save us from obesity. And, meanwhile, there are several very effective ways how you can successfully deal with obesity (proper nutrition, exercise). Another thing is that, of course, a certain predisposition to corpulence is indeed observed in some people. However, more often than not, people suffering from excess weight blame this predisposition for everything, completely ignoring other objective factors - unhealthy diet, sedentary lifestyle. And, after all, it is these factors that most often explain why people get fat.
Other causes of weight gain
Of the remaining reasons that cause weight gain, we select, first of all, age-related changes. With age, our muscles fade, and muscle tissue is gradually replaced by adipose tissue. That is why, try as long as possible, and as far as possible, to lead an active lifestyle: if you do not run, then walk, if you do not engage in mobile games, then at least do exercises. In old age, it is also possible to maintain a certain form and not allow obesity to defeat itself. And, another reason why people get fat is hormonal changes in the body. In men, they occur at pre-retirement age, when the potency decreases, the level of male hormones in the body falls. This can be overcome only through active exercise. In women, such changes occur, most often, during pregnancy, because the body at this time is quite strongly rebuilt, because the woman has to provide nutrition not only for herself, but also for the baby. After childbirth you should try to help your body return to its normal state with the help of proper nutrition and increased activity.
At the request of one of our readers "Beretta", today we will try to understand "?". Everyone knows that people get fat because of various diseases, sedentary lifestyle, malnutrition. This is all interesting, and will be discussed in the second part of the article, but for the first time I would like to tell you as why healthy people really get fat ...
Why people get fat - an extraordinary version (typical for most fat people)
Usually fat people like to read the poor to themselves, to find their sores in others, to leave their heads and put up with them - thinking that it should be so, that these are normal vital processes of the body, that their metabolism is disturbed, etc. For such comrades there is the second part of the article, or a bunch of everything written in the internet. I’m not going to regret you, but I’m going to describe EVERYTHING AS IS EXACTLY.
I'm really not fat, my weight is normal, but whoever I asked would be someone who simply has “extra pounds” or they are really fat — everyone eats all sorts of nonsense: fried, flour, sweet — and all this is inordinate amounts for me. My friend, who is now engaged in losing weight (decided to lose 10 kilos) is really at one time eats almost as much as i eat in a day. Do you think this is normal? Yes, what is the vaunted "metabolism" can withstand such a load? Of course you will get fat here, not going anywhere. Another expression often makes me laugh: "Genetic predisposition"- not well, I can not, I'm so funny. If your parents are used to it, I apologize for the expression, it is too much to eat, and also taught you from your very childhood - by itself it turns into a bad habit eat everything they give, and over time you become as fat as your parents - hereditary predisposition, funny and uncomfortable)) Do not forget - food is such a harmful drug, like, or, just more vile. Food saturated with unnecessary substances creeps in unnoticed, no one writes about it anywhere - it is beneficial to heal rather than teach because it is a lot of money to treat slimming. Think - who needs you? - only for yourself and your loved ones. Doctors do not care for you at all - just to spend more money. For those who produce food, it is beneficial for you to eat excessively. No one except yourself you do not need healthy, constructive - after all, you can make good money on your weight.
In general, if you feel that you have grown fat and really want to lose weight, without any fairy tales - like eat a pill and you get better, stick your machine on your stomach and fat goes into the muscles - then take care of yourself. You need to realize that you have very bad habit - to eat. Although there are indeed fat sick people, but very few of them, described below. So if in fact why do people get fat? - You have not figured it out yet, or you think that the nonsense is written above - I propose the well-known, publicly available, laid out at every corner information gathered together. And so, go ahead ...
Why do people get fat (official version)
What happens in the body with this? To answer this question you first need to understand how and why the accumulation of body fat occurs.
In the human body, everything is functional. Fat deposits, which do not like many, also perform certain functions. Their main task is to store energy in case of a shortage of food, or simply put it - hunger. The second important task is the regulation of body temperature. Look at walrus and other animals that spend a long time in icy water. A thick layer of subcutaneous fat protects they are better than any fur coat from hypothermia. But if there is no hunger and hypothermia, then why do people get fat?
In fat cells (lipocytes), fat is deposited, which in excess amount comes with food in ready-made form or is synthesized from glucose. There are two types of obesity. With one thing - the number of lipocytes does not increase, but only increases the amount of stored fat (hypertrophic obesity), with the second - fat cells actively proliferate (hypercellular type of obesity). The processes of synthesis of fats for various reasons begin to dominate over the processes of their disintegration and elimination from the cells of the lipocytes. Well, a person does not need as much energy as contained in lipid fats! But the body itself is no longer able to slow down or stop the storage. As a result - obesity and people get fat.
Some hormones play the role of a “on / off switch” for the processes of synthesis and breakdown of fats, so a homonal imbalance eventually leads to the development of obesity. Adrenaline and cortisol (adrenal hormone) trigger the process of removing fats from cells, insulin - slows down. Since the amount of insulin in the blood increases with one type of diabetes mellitus, the patient begins to get fat. Estrogens and prolactin (female hormones) activate lipogenesis processes (formation of fatty kilottes). So an excess of these hormones leads to the deposition of fat in the fatty tissue.
Glucose plays the role of the main source of energy, replacing fats, so they do not break up as actively as we would like for sweet teeth. In addition, glucose is able to inhibit the breakdown of fatty acids, inhibiting the enzymes responsible for their transfer to the "energy furnaces" of the cell. At the same time, this sugar (meaning glucose) activates the formation of fatty acids. In short, glucose acts on the principle of “letting everyone in, not letting anyone out”.
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