Obesity: Getting past the stigma and treating the disease

In the majority of people with obesity, the physiological regulation of body fat is dysfunctional and prevents sustainable weight-loss.When people with obesity go on a diet to lose weight, their physiology defends against the loss of body fat -this happens despite having excess body fat that could b...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Irish Medical Times 2022-01, Vol.56 (1), p.28-29
Main Author: Neff, Karl J
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Body fat
Calories
Chronic illnesses
Diabetes
Disease
Energy
Gastrointestinal surgery
Hypothalamus
Life expectancy
Metabolism
Morbidity
Obesity
Physiology
Public sector
Quality of life
Society
Stigma
Weight control
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Summary:In the majority of people with obesity, the physiological regulation of body fat is dysfunctional and prevents sustainable weight-loss.When people with obesity go on a diet to lose weight, their physiology defends against the loss of body fat -this happens despite having excess body fat that could be used for energy. While this can result in some weight loss, living in a constant state of perceived starvation is challenging to maintain, and requires constant conscious resistance of hunger, no matter how much fat mass is present.6-8 The other major physiological adaptation that resists weight loss is reduction in energy expenditure. If hunger does not stimulate calorie ingestion, then the hypothalamus will downregulate the basal metabolic rate so that we burn fewer calories.This is why people will find that despite sticking to a diet that initially resulted in weight loss (while feeling extremely hungry throughout), they ultimately hit a weight loss plateau.This occurs because the energy homeostat adjusts energy expenditure downwards to meet the reduced calorie intake. Ul-Haq Z, Mackay DF, Fenwick E, Pell JR Meta-analysis of the association between body mass index and health-related quality of life among adults, assessed by the SF-36.
ISSN:0047-147X