Why do some people eat but never gain weight? Here are some tips to help you develop a "thin body"!

The most enviable physique is definitely the one that doesn’t gain weight. Eat fried chicken and hot pot, drink milk tea today and Coke tomorrow. Hey, just don’t gain weight!

But some people gain weight even by drinking water. It seems that if they drink a few more sips of water today, they will gain two pounds of weight tomorrow.

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01

The gap between people

How can it be so big?

Genes are indeed important for not gaining weight. Whether you are prone to gaining weight or not, it is all related to a "glutton gene".

In medicine, this gene is called FTO gene, which stands for Fat mass and obesity-associated gene. It is located on chromosome 16 of the human body. This is a common obesity susceptibility gene in the human body, and everyone has it, but some people's FTO gene is produced after mutation.

Those who don’t easily gain weight are mostly the lucky ones whose FTO gene has not mutated. They can easily feel full once their body has taken in enough calories to maintain normal physiological activities. Therefore, they can easily get full, and even if the food is delicious, they can easily stop eating when they are full, and they are unlikely to have the problem of excessive calorie intake.

What's more, the main motivation for them to eat is hunger, not "I'm in a bad mood", "I'm in a good mood", "I'm so angry, let's eat something", and other various reasons that cannot be called reasons at all.

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People who always find various reasons to arrange a meal for themselves and often cannot stop eating may be people with mutated FTO genes. For people with mutated FTO, they really can't control themselves.

In their brains, food not only provides calories and maintains normal physiological functions, but is also a source of happiness. High-fat and high-sugar foods are huge rewards for their brains. The happiness brought by this reward can even overwhelm the alarm signals of the gastrointestinal tract. Compared with the happiness brought by food, the intensity of the satiety signal is too weak.

Simply put, people with no FTO gene mutation will not eat more than one bite after they are full, while people with FTO mutation may eat two more bites after they are full, even if they are not hungry.

Don’t believe it? Find your skinny and fat friends and compare their eating habits.

In fact, there are many genes related to obesity in the human body. For example, the dormant gene will make it more difficult for you to make up your mind to exercise. The positive feedback after exercise will produce less dopamine than others, so you will naturally have less interest in exercise. However, genes do not determine everything. Postnatal development and personal efforts are more important.

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02

Can’t lose weight if you have obesity genes?

Of course not!

"Control your diet and move your legs" is definitely the most effective rule for maintaining and losing weight. And behind this golden rule is actually creating a calorie deficit.

The human body needs to consume a certain amount of calories every day to maintain normal physiological activities, which is the basal metabolism.

Even if you sit still all day, your body will consume these calories because they are the energy needed to maintain body temperature, breathing, heartbeat, blood circulation , and the normal functioning of each cell and organ.

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Basal metabolism accounts for about 60% to 75% of daily energy consumption, which is the bulk of daily energy consumption.

In addition, the human body consumes extra energy for daily walking and exercise. The consumption and absorption of food itself also requires energy, which is called the thermal effect of food. Therefore, the energy consumed by the human body every day is actually the sum of basal metabolism, energy consumed by daily activities, and the thermal effect of food.

Everyone consumes a certain amount of food every day, which can provide a certain amount of calories to the human body after digestion and absorption. If the calories consumed every day are higher than the calories consumed, this calorie gap will make it easier for the body to lose weight.

And if the energy intake is more than the energy expenditure every day, then obviously, obesity will naturally occur.

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At this point, we have to say a cruel fact, some people's basal metabolism is indeed higher than others. Therefore, these people can lose weight even if they don't move! But fortunately, basal metabolism can be changed through acquired efforts. In a static state, muscles consume more calories, so increasing the muscle content of the whole body can naturally increase basal metabolism.

This is also the reason why people who have long-term exercise and fitness habits eat a lot but don’t gain much weight.

Long-term exercise can increase skeletal muscle content, thereby helping to consume more calories. Even if they sit or lie down for a whole day, they can consume more calories than ordinary people.

By the way, if you want to increase your basal metabolism, exercise such as high-intensity interval training (HIIT) may be more effective than jogging. At this time, some people may say, "I have a sedentary gene, I really don't want to move," so they choose to diet to lose weight.

For example, the recommended daily calorie intake for an adult woman is 1,800 calories. If she doesn't eat or drink to get below 800 calories, she will eat apples for dinner and vegetables for protein. If she persists for a period of time, she will naturally lose weight with such a large calorie gap. However, once she resumes her normal diet, she will soon return to her original state. She may even become fatter than before. This is the so-called rebound.

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In fact, long-term dieting will affect the body's basal metabolism. In order to maintain normal physiological activities under low calorie intake, the body will reduce consumption and even consume muscle, which will form a relatively low basal metabolic level over time.

Even if you have returned to a normal diet, this relatively low basal metabolic rate will not immediately return to normal levels. Therefore, some people may still gain weight even if they don't eat much.

Therefore, if you want to lose weight and keep it off, you really shouldn't go on an excessive diet.

Scientific diet plus regular exercise are the most effective and healthiest means.

In addition, you can also optimize your diet structure appropriately, such as reducing fat intake, eating more high-quality protein, high-quality carbohydrates, etc. Believe me, you can still lose weight successfully without going hungry once!

Finally, it is worth reminding everyone that if you really eat a lot for a long time, don’t move, and still lose weight rapidly, you must pay attention.

Hyperthyroidism, digestive system diseases, eating disorders, diabetes, tumors, chronic infections, parasites and other problems may all manifest such abnormalities. Before you marvel at your own miraculous physique, it is best to go to the hospital for a thorough examination.

Produced by | Science Popularization China

Author｜Hydra Science Author

Review | Wu Ping Director of Clinical Nutrition Department, Tongji Hospital Affiliated to Tongji University

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