As we reported yesterday, overweight people don’t eat enough food … of the right kind.
Similarly, while many may assume that overweight folks are lazy and are not motivated enough, the truth is that they may be too stressed out.
Specifically, stress increases appetite.
And it is well-documented that stress causes people to crave high-fat, high-carbohydrate junk foods which pack on belly fat. For example, the National Academy of Sciences reported in 2003:
[The stress hormone cortisol] (GCs) … increase the salience of pleasurable or compulsive activities (ingesting sucrose, fat, and drugs, or wheel-running). This motivates ingestion of “comfort food.” … GCs act systemically to increase abdominal fat depots…. In stressed or depressed humans chronic stress induces either increased comfort food intake and body weight gain …. We propose that people eat comfort food in an attempt to reduce the activity in the chronic stress-response network with its attendant anxiety. These mechanisms, determined in rats, may explain some of the epidemic of obesity occurring in our society.
And while many would assume that overweight people are lazy and sleep too much, a lack of sleep actually increases obesity. For example, the Chicago Tribune reported last year:
In 1960, Americans averaged 81/2 hours of sleep a night …
Study after study showing that a lack of good quality sleep—seven to nine hours of uninterrupted slumber—is making us fat. And it’s not just overworked adults who are gaining weight. Long-term studies are finding that sleep-deprived children also are piling on the pounds.
“You’re fighting against the tide to lose weight when you’re sleep-deprived,” said Dr. Amy Aronsky, medical director of The Center for Sleep Disorders in Portland, Ore., and a board certified sleep specialist. “Good sleep is as important as a good diet and exercise when it comes to weight loss.”
***
Studies have shown that when sleep is restricted, the hormone ghrelin increases and the hormone leptin decreases. Ghrelin tells our brain that we’re hungry, while leptin tells it we’ve eaten enough.
Average leptin levels decreased 18 percent when sleep was restricted to four hours per night over two nights, according to a study published in the journal Sleep Medicine by Dr. Eve Van Cauter, Average ghrelin levels increased 28 percent when sleep was restricted.
In other words, when we don’t get enough sleep we feel hungry, even if we’ve eaten enough.
In another Van Cauter study, healthy young volunteers showed signs of prediabetes when they were restricted to four hours of sleep for six nights in a row.
The stress hormone cortisol also surges when we’re sleep-deprived. When that happens, we crave high-fat, high-carbohydrate foods (“comfort foods”) to increase our serotonin levels to calm down, said Dr. Michael Breus, author of “The Sleep Doctor’s Diet Plan.”
Other studies consistently show that adults sleeping fewer than six hours a night increase their likelihood for becoming overweight or obese — even when exercising and eating right, Decker said. Among adults ages 32 to 49, those averaging five hours of sleep were twice as likely to be obese after nine years compared with those averaging seven hours.
The news for kids is just as alarming. A study of 8,234 children (starting at age 38 weeks) found that the odds of being obese by age 7 increased 50 percent for children averaging fewer than 101/2 hours of sleep. Another study found that 58 percent of obese kids averaged fewer than eight hours of sleep, while just 11 percent of non-obese kids averaged fewer than eight hours of sleep.
In addition, numerous studies show that melatonin reduces body weight and burns fat. Our body produces melatonin when it is dark. If we don’t get enough sleep, it means the light is on too much, and our body can’t produce enough melatonin.
Finally, reducing stress and getting enough sleep gives people extra energy to exercise. On other other hand, if people are stressed out and sleep deprived, they’ll be focused on just getting through the day, and will thus be less likely to exercise.
Of course, exercise is a powerful stress-reducer and cure for insomnia … so it goes both ways.
I try not to think about prions.
Because if I did, I would have to buy a small farm....and I can't afford to.
The Horror...the Horror.....
funny how the Dept of Ag or USDA and other regulators work. If you know about a problem you must disclose, so the answer is DONT TEST! haha Lysteria? nah, just dont test!
Wash your fruits/veggies well folks. overly processed food is just a risk factor for stuff to go wrong, minimize its intake. Pretty simple really.
What election or lobby group would benefit from this non-story becoming a story and action by our overactive gov't. I am trying to follow the money here. Any ideas?
Good Q
I guess the Military/Industrial/Nanny State/Monsatan complex.
groundwork already being laid to ban bringing your own lunch to school, now school/prison meals subject to "approval, confiscation and replacement" with government GMO foods.
Next they will ban the fresh food section at the grocery store, come into your home and tell you what to eat, force the Mosanto GMO Soy down your throat.
They are always thinking, they are always winning, and our freedoms are chopped away little by little. We are fvcked.
Jesus said, (Matthew 15:11, paraphrased) "It is not what goes into your mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of your keyboard; this defiles a person.”
I find this article disturbing...so much so it is sure to keep me up at night eating Cheetos.
You are what you eat -- cheap and easy.
I concur. Reading it, I got a sudden uncontrollable urge to go to Golden Corral and bolt myself to a table.
I wonder if a diet of MSG, aspartame, high-fructose corn syrup, super-charged Starbucks cafeined coffee, Bisphenol-A, invert sugar, hydrolyzed yeast protein, pesticides, herbicides, GMO corn and soy, white flour, Olestra, hydrogenated trans-fats, and milk tainted with rBGH growth hormones is having any effect?
In a nutshell. It's interesting that some folks give these people the entire blame, yet when it comes to a criminal economic system, they point out the big players as the main factor and their propoganda as another.
No difference in FDA-Monsanto land. It takes a bit of an effort outside traditional & government information to realize how dangerous, weight gaining, cancer producing and non-nutritional our "traditional" food is The FDA just approved an increase in the amount of sugar in our diet. This in the middle of a diabetic explosion. Yes, they really care about our health. So of course, urban and poorer people are hardest hit and they have without a doubt less access to healthy organic food. One of the best moves for their sake is the quick growth of urban agriculture.
Nah, what are you a conspiracy theorist? Food is food ...
Correction. A calorie is a calorie.
Good article, GW.
George Washington
Ever watch Penn and Teller's Bullshit?
May as well read what I posted above regarding the History of Pink Slime.
I love a good scaremongering as much as the next guy, I mean fuck I thought the world would end on y2k.
But it didn't.
The thing is what we think we know now we realize we never did comprehend it come next year. Like Cholesterol, or Margarine instead of Butter, or Statins, or Antidepressants.
We blather on until the science proves us wrong, then we blather about something new.
Food articles always remove two important factors, the first is genetics. The second is modern culture.
Your genetic makeup is the most important of any discussion about health. But it's so gaddamned complex that it never enters the equation. Sure is easy to blame the simple things people grasp easily,like food or government conspiracy.
Right now we as humans have the most successful culture ever. We have more leisure time, we expend less energy to survive, we have ready access to a wide variety of foods.
But again it always narrows down to food as the culprit. The other day there was a post about obesity since 1994. Couple of people equated it with welfare. No one considered the big goddamned tech boom that moved us from outside to indors playing games and Skypeing.
Once again simpler to blame BIGOV for all our ills.
In the end it boils down to we in the US, well the industrial world, have the security ( the safety) to complain about food the rest of the world would have little problem eating.
George Carlin said something about Environmentalists, which I think applies to a=every scaremonger out there.
“We’re so self-important. Everybody’s going to save something now. “Save the trees, save the bees, save the whales, save those snails.” And the greatest arrogance of all: save the planet. Save the planet, we don’t even know how to take care of ourselves yet. I’m tired of this shit. I’m tired of f-ing Earth Day. I’m tired of these self-righteous environmentalists, these white, bourgeois liberals who think the only thing wrong with this country is that there aren’t enough bicycle paths. People trying to make the world safe for Volvos. Besides, environmentalists don’t give a shit about the planet. Not in the abstract they don’t. You know what they’re interested in? A clean place to live. Their own habitat. They’re worried that some day in the future they might be personally inconvenienced. Narrow, unenlightened self-interest doesn’t impress me.
In what universe is the entire western world, caught up in pollution of air, water and food, toxic everything, war, fascism and debt slavery characterized as the "most successful"? Perhaps you should tell us for whom?
68% of all Americans are overweight, and obesity has almost doubled in the last couple of decades worldwide.
Do you think we can get those folks to change their habits by calling them names, or by educating them?
Of COURSE they need to exercise more and eat less! But saying it in a nice way will work better!
Not "those folks" GW, you are talking about yourself. Who else gives half a shit about fatties? A little self control, and these folks/you, would not be posting such drivel on a website such as this. I will not make you feel better about having no control. Why not give a junkie a high 5 and tell him its not his fault he sticks that needle in his arm? Grow up and have some pride in yourself for chrissakes!
There's no doubt in my mind you're Chinese. You're lack of compassion for your fellow man is telling. I see you as 30 or younger and a product of China's one child policy. You grew up an only child getting what you wanted when you wanted and pissed and moaned till mommy shoved it in your arrogant spoiled face. You were also probably one of those souless dickheads who walked right by 2 year old Yue Yue as she lay dying after being run over by two of your countrymen and passed by over a dozen people. Some never even bothering to look down at her still breathing body. Fuck off.
Wrong, I'm a white american. Tsukato is the way japs say Scott. Now go fuck yourself.
Tsukato, if I had a weight problem, it would be entirely my responsibility to exercise more and eat less. No ifs, ands or butts ...
And by the way, girlie man, I bet you I can lift alot more weights than you can, troll.
Just Googled Tsukato, means 'snot nose' in some gibberish tongue (not Klingon).
I kinda doubt it. Livin here in China I've got more free time than I know what to do with, so I always go to the gym. I can bench 360lbs. Can you? :) I seem to have struck a nerve with you, haven't I Chubby?
Tsukato,
Personally, I think you're projecting and are full of shit. Bench 360? What unit is that measured in? Grams? I'm in my 3rd week of trip number 16 to China. Been to dozens of cities large and small and am currently in Tongli outside of Suzhou. 99.9% of Chinese men I see couldn't do 5 pushups even if their life depended on it and the ones I see in the hotel gyms have physiques like grandpa. Lmao. too funny.
Ok, but a real man would bring up the squat or deadlift when talking shit! Every girlie man bench presses!
360's not bad tho. Good job.
Actually, I cant do squats anymore cuz I really fucked up my knees and arches doing just that :(
I've given up reading your stupid shit - I just look for your handle and hit the down arrow - you need to sit down and shut up kid - once you grow a brain, come back and opine.
@GW - thanks for the info - very relevant today with obesity on the rise; the causes need to widely spread to obviate more early deaths due to diabetes and heart desease.
I've found exercise good but to lose the extra pounds, keep track of/reduce your daily intake of calories, AND the average expenditure of calories FOR YOUR AGE GROUP - as you move from 45-50 into 50-55, your metabolism slows and your required calorie intake is greatly reduced; therein lies a great part of this 'obestiy' statistic problem.
Good one fatty! You really put me in my place :)
fat can be lost, stupid is not so easy, fuck off troll
Ah, China ... I bet I could take you ...
Are you in the U.S. intelligence services, or a businessman?
Still waiting for you to connect the dots on OBL having been set up by Zawahiri in exchange for Mubarak's ouster. How do you think we managed to get accurate target info on Bin Ladens closest Lieutenants in Pakistan? Word is OBL's estranged wife went from one of Zawahiri's camps directly to OBL. A couple of months later Mubarak resigns and then one month after that Binny is shot in the eye?
http://zeenews.india.com/news/south-asia/was-osama-betrayed-by-his-wife-...
http://archive.jordantimes.com/?news=34429
funny how Al K-duh is working for US again...in Libya
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/840...
and Syria...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvHJywCBNQg
nobody else has the balls to connect the dots..................
I doubt it. Business, and NOT the blogging business-hehe!
Yeah ... I would be in better shape if I didn't work a busy professional job, and then spend a lot of time blogging. AND I'm married and have two kids . Sounds like you're a single guy.
Life is simpler when you're a single guy, you lucky bastard!!! (Oops, did I say that with my out loud voice? Don't tell my wife.)
I'm married too, with 2 kids and another on the way. Actually, I have tons of free time cuz labor is so darned cheap here. If I were back in the states I'm sure I'd be a wreck.
Then why post this bullshit here? Why not on Jenny Craig, Oprah, or weight watchers? Its too strange. It would be like if I posted a story on here about surfing. Its just not the right place.
Because a lot of Amerexicans are obese, as is the government, so before you can grasp the reins of horses you must grasp the reins of yourself.
Fuck off already. JHC what a bore. We get it. You hate fat people. Or you're bored and lonely, so you spend all day blogging.
GO AWAY. NOBODY CARES WHAT YOU SAY. STOP POLLUTIONG THE THREAD. Somebody, please punch this fucktard's face.
Ouch! Try using words that help, not hurt. I really rubbed you the wrong way I guess. I'm really sorry, and wanna make amends. How about this:
Fatties are the "New Cool"
Fatties rock!
All the bitches love Fatties!
When I grow up, I'm gonna be a lard ass just like you.
Fit people have lower IQs than fatties. Just take a gander at the brain trust at any dungeons and dragons convention.
Good enough mkkby?- Lets be pengyou :)
You didn't rub anyone the wrong way. You are just an imbecile and you are boring everyone to death with your trolling. Is that hard to understand?
But I am just posting to an insult bot so probably the programmer is somewhere laughing at me
Start your own blog jerk off.
Maybe instead you'd rather GW talk about how Obama gives money printers green light today by having a meeting with Canada and Mexico on energy exports...right!!
Sure, that's why gas prices are high, it's because we need a keystone pipeline and more drilling. LOL. Obama's on his knees begging Bernanke to keep the spigot running, let's make sure the money doesn't stop, to hell with it. All you bankers here can make sure to repeat the lie that gas is high because demand, oh wait demand is dead, gas is high because peak oil, oh wait wasn't gas $35/gallon couple years ago?
WWWWAAAAHHHHH???????????? YOU...MAKE..NO...SENSE...AT ALL!
Why are gas prices high right now?
They tell us it's mideast tensions LOL. But never fear Obama is diligently working to bring in oil, he's in serious talks with Mexico and Canada, he's hard at work on trying to bring prices down. LOL! If he wants gas prices down then all he has to do is tell his savior Bernanke to pull money supply.
Really, I'm not being sarcastic. I really wanna be your friend! I bet we would have a helluva buncha laughs, if only we lived closer to one another. You remind me of one of my best friends from childhood. He was in a special ed class, but he wasn't retarded, they called it border-line retardation. But anyways, he was the craziest, funniest guy I've ever known, and a helluva nice guy to boot.
Tatsuko has to be a stand-alone insult bot.
His comments are devoid of humanity, and by the glib nature of the posts the program seems immune to the fact that everyone is downvoting his stupidity. Him talking about retardation? his comments indicate (if human) a person a few rungs below 100 at best.
Since Travis was desaparecido I guess the best we can hope for is for Tetsuko to post often through multiple threads .. Tetsuki will need to be programed to bash gold I guess?
Hey whstlblwr, you are my new ZH hero. You're far better than MDB, and your complete incoherence is very enamouring. Please keep up the good work buddy.
Correction to above typo, a couple of years ago oil was around $35/barrel, now it's over $100/barrel, yet demand is down.
Yeah right, you're a businessman from China. So why don't you explain it to us? Why are oil prices high while demand is down? At this rate gas will be $6/gallon by summer.
Are you joking? HAHA!!! You crack me up Champ!
(double post)
Haha awesome...
He does look tired, see the slight squint in the eyes. Like he's been through a war or something....