Is There A Relationship Between Genes and Long Term Weight Management?
Have you ever wondered why do you regain weight after you have worked so hard to lose it? Well, you are not alone. A Stanford University study suggests that 95% of people who lose weight eventually regain it, meaning only 5% are able to keep off the weight they have lost.
Losing weight causes the body to enter a protective mode because of its inability to tell the difference between intentional weight loss and being forced into famine. Appetite is increased, metabolism is lowered, and fat stores are preserved together with energy storage.
A new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine suggests that the yo-yo diet response or weight cycling, drives the urge to eat even a year after weight loss. The body prompts us to eat about 100 calories more than usual for every two pounds of weight lost, resulting in yo-yo dieters regaining more weight than they lost.
Yo-yo diets become double-edged swords especially when drastic attempts to lose weight leads to short term weight loss, followed by bingeing and revenge-eating once someone stops dieting. The probability of overindulging or overcompensating is higher when unhealthy diets are adopted to lose weight fast – including skipping meals or eating too little calories to sustain the body. Overindulging is the opposite of mindful and intuitive eating, and interferes with our natural hormone responses telling us we are satiated.
If we continuously overeat on a daily basis and fail to adopt healthy eating habits, the body’s natural satiation cues will eventually subside, leaving our bodies out of tune and caught in the vicious cycle of yo-yo dieting.
However, some relapses may not be caused by voluntary resumption of unhealthy habits. Some genetic profiles are associated with a greater propensity for regaining weight after the reintroduction of increased calories.
Genes of Interest and Recommendations
A DNA test will cover the genes of interest for yo-yo diet response, such as ADRB2 and IL6. There are two crucial components to sustainable weight management; namely initial weight loss and weight maintenance – first where you’re losing the weight, and second, where you either maintain or regain it.
While multiple genes affect our body weight, several known family gene mutations appear to predispose some to struggle with maintaining weight loss.
Some of the genetic mutations involve resistance to the hunger-suppressing hormone leptin, which results in a harder time losing weight once it’s gained than for someone without that specific genetic makeup.
Under normal circumstances, our fat stores release leptin into the bloodstream. This tells the body that energy stores are available, and signals us to eat less.
As we lose fat, the body’s hunger hormones are adversely affected. Leptin is decreased, whereas ghrelin, a hormone which induces appetite, is increased. The urge to eat greatly increases instead of diminishing after weight gain because the brain is convinced that future famines are likely.
Despite a dieter’s body actually needing fewer calories to maintain itself once it weighs less, the body prompts the individual to keep eating regular calories to fill this “energy gap.”
Putting aside yo-yo dieting which results in serious setbacks which can make meeting your health goals more difficult, there is a however a healthy and sustainable way to maximise weight loss with minimal effort.
Knowing that your genes encode a specific outcome, you can mitigate their effects by adopting the proper speed to decrease or increase calories healthily.
We can also personalise our own weight management programme so that it’s effective and sustainable
Get Your DNA Test Now! Health Starts by Knowing Your Genes.
Find and Get your DNA Kit from your nearest health professional below!
Disclaimer. TELEME blog posts contains general information about health conditions and treatments. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. The information is not advice and should not be treated as such.
If you think you may be suffering from any medical condition, you should seek immediate medical attention from your doctor or other professional healthcare providers. You should never delay seeking medical advice, disregard medical advice, or discontinue medical treatment because of information on this website.
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