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Why Some People Eat Like Pigs & Stay Thin: It's In the Genes! PDF Print E-mail
Written by Richard L. Lipman M.D.   
Monday, 09 February 2009 00:42
Two  Opposing Views on Why Some People Can Remain Thin and Eat What They Want:
Genes vs. NEAT
NEAT Explains the Difference Between Fat and Thin:
Dr James Levine from the Mayo Clinic thinks the difference between thin and fat people is not genetic, but related to the movement thru the day that everyone does, not related to extra exercise,  which he calls NEAT.  In his recent book, Move a Little, Lose a Lot, this Mayo Clinic Endocrinologist and exercise guru shows  very convincing data that there may be a 1000 to 2000 calorie per day difference in people who move about vs. those completely sedentary. This is independent of extra exercise like going to a gym or for long walks. He points out that thin people, when overfed thousands of extra calories do not gain weight because they increase their NEAT unconsciously. He adovocates increasing NEAT by  getting up from the office chair, moving about, walking a flight of steps, parking car as far as possible away from your office etc.
All ways to get some movement into one's daily life.



The Genetic Viewpoint

Why Do Some People Never Get Fat?

BBC Newsmagazine, London
January 22, 2009
Why do some people seem to eat what they like and remain thin, while others limit their food, often drastically, yet struggle to shed their bulk-the genet

One expert,Dr. Jane Wardle, thinks it’s due to the  genes that influence appetite. For thin people,   "it's kind of effortless because they don't even want to eat. They do not have to exert will power and self-control whereas for other people, their brain has little control over what they eat.

From:www.allaboutyou.com                

One expert, Dr. Jane Wardle, thinks it’s due to the  genes that influence appetite. For thin people,   "it's kind of effortless because they don't even want to eat. They do not have to exert willpower and self-control whereas for other people, their brain responses to foods that they're exposed to being switched off effectively”, said Dr Wardle.


When  skinny people start eating their metabolism increases to keep them thin. In 1967,  Dr  Ethan Sims, fed thin  prisoners in a Vermont jail as much as 10,000 calories a day in attempt to make them fat. No matter how much food they ate, they remained  relatively thin. The few who did gain, lost their weight in a few weeks.


Dr Rudy Liebel, from Columbia University explains the problem:” Think of it like a thermostat and that each person has a set point,  when it is reduced below that point the body begins to do things that will force it to recover its lost body weight."


Dr Carel le Roux, an obesity specialist thinks there is another explanation, why some people appear not to get fat despite eating at lot. She says, "Studies have shown that this tendency to lay down muscle rather than fat when we over-eat is genetically determined.


All of these answers focus on genetic factors, beyond everyone’s control and infer that it’s almost hopeless for overweight people to lose significant weight and keep it off.

The "genetic factor"  does not explain the rapid rise  in obesity over the last 10 years, since  the gene pool cannot change so quickly. It suggests that  environment must also play a role.

Last Updated on Monday, 11 May 2009 00:07
 
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