Is it a good thing to not gain weight? Let us help you understand the truth about obesity

Obesity may affect your good looks

Or cause unexpected illness

If you also have obesity anxiety

This article may provide you with a solution

Improve or prevent obesity

1. Causes of Obesity

Obesity is often related to fat accumulation, and the generation of fat in the body is actually a survival ability that human ancestors have evolved in the long process of evolution. In life, we often use the phrase "eating too much" to mock others for meddling in other people's affairs, but in the long river of history, "not having enough to eat" is the norm.

"The Starving Sudan" 1993

In order to survive in an environment with food shortages, humans have evolved the ability to convert excess energy into fat. In other words, the existence of fat is indispensable for our survival today, because fat gives us the advantage of storing energy. Perhaps because of the memory of hunger that is invisibly inherited in the genes, people tend to naturally prefer high-protein, high-fat, and high-carb foods, because in an environment with food shortages, the more energy one gets at one time, the greater the possibility of survival. So not getting fat may mean a higher risk of survival. Fat can become an advantage for our survival because of the food shortage in the past. However, with the development of the food industry, a continuous supply of high-calorie foods has become possible, and the existence of fat has gradually become a burden for some people.

Modern people often consume high-calorie foods for a long time and exercise less, so most people are in a state of high energy intake and low energy consumption for a long time, which eventually leads to fat accumulation.

In addition, psychological reasons are also one of the causes of obesity. When a person feels anxious, the brain will involuntarily think about how to get out of the current predicament. In order to continuously supply energy to the high-speed brain, your adrenal glands will secrete a hormone called cortisol, which will do everything possible to increase your blood sugar to maintain your brainstorming. First, it will increase your appetite, especially the desire for various high-carb and high-fat foods. Secondly, it will suppress your sense of fullness so that you can eat more. Sugar will activate specific areas of your brain. If you consume too much sugar, there is also a risk of addiction. The more anxious you are, the more you want to eat, and the more you eat, the fatter you get. The fatter and anxious have entered a vicious circle. Cortisol also causes fat to accumulate in the abdomen, which in turn forms more harmful centripetal obesity (abdominal obesity).

Abdominal obesity, image source: Fenghua Health Talk

Sleep quality is also an important factor affecting obesity. On the one hand, lack of sleep can also cause an increase in cortisol. On the other hand, if you lack rest, the prefrontal cortex in the brain that is responsible for rational logic will relax its inhibitory effect on the amygdala, causing you to become more emotional. When emotions overcome reason, you are more likely to eat foods high in oil, salt, and fat.

2. The harm of obesity

The dangers of obesity, source: Fenghua Health Talk

When you digest food, the glucose concentration in your blood will gradually rise. At this time, you need a hormone called "insulin" to maintain blood sugar balance. If you consume too much high-calorie food for a long time, especially a high-fat and high-sugar diet, insulin will become less and less sensitive, and it will be difficult for glucose to enter the cells, which is "insulin resistance". Insulin resistance will cause glucose to accumulate in the blood, which will lead to high blood sugar and increase the risk of diabetes in the long run. Long-term complications of diabetes include renal failure, retinopathy, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, etc. In addition, most obese people have high low-density lipoprotein cholesterol. Excessive low-density lipoprotein cholesterol in the blood may be deposited in the blood vessel walls, causing bad cholesterol to accumulate and form plaques. This accumulation will narrow the blood vessels and reduce blood flow, thereby increasing the risk of atherosclerosis. This plaque will accumulate in the coronary arteries that supply blood to the heart, thereby increasing your risk of coronary heart disease. Obese people are usually more likely to snore. Not only is the snoring loud, but it is also accompanied by obvious pauses. It may suddenly make a loud noise after 20 to 30 seconds. This is sleep apnea syndrome caused by obesity. Fat in the neck can compress the airway, causing it to narrow, reduce oxygen supply, and even lead to death in severe cases. Adipose tissue itself is an important endocrine organ that secretes various hormones to regulate the body's physiological activities. However, when there is too much adipose tissue, it can cause endocrine system disorders, thereby increasing the risk of cancer.

3. Keep your mouth shut and move your legs

Most of the causes of obesity can be attributed to the state of high energy intake and low energy consumption. If you want to lose weight, the best way is to appropriately reduce energy intake and increase energy consumption, so as to achieve a delicate balance. One of the best ways to reduce energy intake is to improve the dietary structure. Studies have shown that foods rich in protein, dietary fiber, and water will make you feel fuller for a longer time than other foods. Therefore, we should appropriately increase the intake of vegetables, grains, protein and water, while reducing the intake of refined carbon water and fat. Note that it is to reduce rather than not eat. Whether it is eating a lot of protein, not eating carbon water or dieting, it is not the right way to lose weight, but may cause other health problems. After controlling your mouth, the next thing to do is to move your legs. "Exercise for one hour a day, work healthily for fifty years, and live happily for a lifetime", the truth is sometimes so simple and unpretentious. Proper exercise is not only an important guarantee for physical fitness, but also the best way to avoid obesity.

The conditions for weight loss vary from person to person, and no method can solve the problem of obesity once and for all. The "Report on the Nutrition and Chronic Disease Status of Chinese Residents (2020)" shows that the situation of overweight and obesity among Chinese residents is severe. The overweight and obesity rates of adult residents are 34.3% and 16.4% respectively; the overweight and obesity rates of children and adolescents aged 6 to 17 are 11.1% and 7.9% respectively; the overweight and obesity rates of children under 6 are 6.8% and 3.6% respectively. The problem of obesity is imminent, and I sincerely hope that everyone will not be troubled by obesity, nor be anxious about obesity.