Hi, my name is John and I'm a slow metabolizer

[redfox1939]

Vegetables can also rev up the metabolism, and one of the best vegetables to eat is dark green spinach. Fiber such as whole grains, oatmeal and almonds also boosts metabolism. Fruits like blueberries and apples are wonderful foods that speed the metabolism. Natural yogurt does wonders for the digestive tract. Green tea, coffee and water help with hunger control and also boost the metabolism.

[JAK]

Big fan of spinach also, and lots of green herbs in soup. High in protein, A, C, Iron, and Calcium.

Dreaming up a new diet scheme. Doesn't matter what it is really as just about anything will work for awhile, as long as I'm paying attention. So what I am thinking is a diet where I get a minimal number of calories per day, like 1200 or so, PLUS control/reward calories for every pound I lose, like say 2400, so I don't lose too fast and I'm encouraged to exercise more. So if I was losing 0.3 pounds per day on average, I would be eating 1920 calories and burning about 3000 calories in total. To lose 0.5 pounds per day I would eat 2400 calories but would need to burn 4100 calories per day. If I was more idle, burning say 1800 calories per day, I would get to eat only 1440 calories and lose only 0.1 pounds per day. Of course, like any scheme, it falls apart when my weight drops mostly through water and I reward myself with food I haven't burned, so I would need to be careful to spread my reward/control food over a few days.

Then there's the holidays, and you have to start all over at some point.

[imscotty]

It is an infection John Gault...

http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/0b7af...#axzz2FVNROYMs

[Pedaling Fool]

It is an infection John Gault...

http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/0b7af...#axzz2FVNROYMs

Sounds like a study to justify the development of more drugs by the pharmaceutical industry; should be a boom for the industry. People will eat them like candy like all the OTC drugs currently available. And it gives them another crutch to lean on, so they don't have to assume personal responsibility.

The larger the population (7 billion and growing) the more idiots to make money off of.

[RodentWhisperer]

It is an infection John Gault...

http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/0b7af...#axzz2FVNROYMs

What's more, that's not a study showing "infection" per se, but rather a correlation between obesity and compromised richness of one's gut flora. The probiotics people have been working with this for years.

[Wise Old Owl]

It's all snake oilsnake91.jpg Let's just blame the McDonalds burger (and the rise of beer consumption) and be done with it It's your choice to eat it or not ... Seriously the flora in the gut causes obesity.... nonsense.

[imscotty]

What's more, that's not a study showing "infection" per se, but rather a correlation between obesity and compromised richness of one's gut flora. The probiotics people have been working with this for years.

Excellent point that correlation does not imply causation Rodent Whisperer. Yet there is a growing body of scientific research that indicated that certain viral infections could lead to obesity in both animals and humans. Here is an abstract for a paper supporting this...

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17908526

Here is an article that summarizes the research...

http://health.dailynewscentral.com/content/view/2092/

I am not implying that this is the only cause of obesity. Clearly most people should be exercising more and eating less. But the human body is a complex system and there is much we do not know.

[Pedaling Fool]

I don't doubt the existence of certain microbes that have this effect on the body's metabolism. However, my point was that I see this as another excuse for people that say they can't lose weight, i.e. it's not their fault and there is a market waiting to open to address that BS thought. The fact is, the overwhelming majority of people that are fat put themselves in that position, period.

Everyone has lost weight that participated on the show Biggest Loser.

[imscotty]

Seriously the flora in the gut causes obesity.... nonsense.

I respectfully disagree WOO. Two groups of lab mice fed the same diet. One group purposely infected with an obesity causing virus, the other not. One group of mice becomes obese and the other does not. Some of the research on lab animals seems pretty clear cut. Admittedly there is still little research on the infectious nature of obesity in humans.

220px-Fatmouse.jpg

The obese are often stigmatized as lacking willpower and being mentally weak. However, there appear to be several other factors that come into play, genetics, epigenetics and perhaps other unknown environmental factors.

[Wise Old Owl]

And I had two male ferrets - for 7 years, one was testicular challenged the other had nuts... They ate the same food and water and shared the same box and the one with nuts became fat...

I have a different take on all this .... from a history of reality.



As a child I remember seeing images of men on early black and white Tv in 60's and there were no snacks, people ate at home Women cooked a typical meal that was low sodium, low sugar - meat potatoes and two vegetables. We didn't snack... we had fruit pies and ice cream. Nobody was fat. As kids we had chores and we worked, played, did sports outside.

This is more about the current society values... We sit in front of xbox for hours or the computer ... we are sedentary, and then we Hike. It's not the same -

[imscotty]

However, my point was that I see this as another excuse for people that say they can't lose weight, i.e. it's not their fault and there is a market waiting to open to address that BS thought. The fact is, the overwhelming majority of people that are fat put themselves in that position, period.

Point taken John Gault. I do not disagree. But the population suddenly loosing its willpower did not cause the ever-increasing obesity problem in this country. If we are to improve the situation we must identify what has caused the shift. Certainly a change in lifestyles is a major one. People need to turn off the computer and get outside more. But I believe that our changing diet (high fructose corn syrup, high carbs), epigenetics and yes perhaps infectious agents also come into play.

In the interest of disclosure I need to lose about 30 lbs. I blame my love of beer, a lack of willpower, and not enough exercise for my condition

[Wise Old Owl]

IM Scotty - my wife loves that you used a avatar of Barnabus. - Here is a scientist that makes sense... Another WB member a couple of years ago found this for me... Here is a suggestion ... open a second browser window and let this run and just listen to it ... he does take a while to close the point.

[Drybones]

Here is an abstract for a paper supporting this...

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17908526

Here is an article that summarizes the research...

http://health.dailynewscentral.com/content/view/2092/

I am not implying that this is the only cause of obesity. Clearly most people should be exercising more and eating less. But the human body is a complex system and there is much we do not know.

Because it's written it must be true. I truly believe scientists of old tried to find truth, those now try to find support for thier opinion. Just write a paper saying you're 6'1", 177 and it must be true.

[Drybones]

And I had two male ferrets - for 7 years, one was testicular challenged the other had nuts... They ate the same food and water and shared the same box and the one with nuts became fat...

I have a different take on all this .... from a history of reality.



As a child I remember seeing images of men on early black and white Tv in 60's and there were no snacks, people ate at home Women cooked a typical meal that was low sodium, low sugar - meat potatoes and two vegetables. We didn't snack... we had fruit pies and ice cream. Nobody was fat. As kids we had chores and we worked, played, did sports outside.

This is more about the current society values... We sit in front of xbox for hours or the computer ... we are sedentary, and then we Hike. It's not the same -

You don't see any fat people in that photo. I saw an old photo of my mom and the group she worked with, no one was fat, of course they worked all day, came home and worked in the garden to raise the food we ate.

[WingedMonkey]

I haven't been to a doctor in more that 20 years (other than as a volunteer for some research studies). I doubt I'm gonna get health advice off of Whiteblaze from folks that are constantly at the doctor or under the knife for one ailment after another.
Guess I'm just lucky.

[Drybones]

I respectfully disagree WOO. Two groups of lab mice fed the same diet. One group purposely infected with an obesity causing virus, the other not. One group of mice becomes obese and the other does not. Some of the research on lab animals seems pretty clear cut. Admittedly there is still little research on the infectious nature of obesity in humans.

220px-Fatmouse.jpg

The obese are often stigmatized as lacking willpower and being mentally weak. However, there appear to be several other factors that come into play, genetics, epigenetics and perhaps other unknown environmental factors.

I agree it's much harder for some than others to control weight but it can be done. My wife says she can smell food and gain weight. After having three babies she gained a lot of weight, became very unhappy, started seeing a shrink, I went along with it for a while and finally told her what she needed, get a pair of running shoe and a good Bible, she did, read and studied the Bible and started out walking slow, then walking fast, then jogging, then running, then winning road races, has 10 trophies, lost the weight, now healthy in both body and mind. The shoes addressed the physical needs, the Bible addressed the emotional needs.

[Drybones]

I haven't been to a doctor in more that 20 years (other than as a volunteer for some research studies). I doubt I'm gonna get health advice off of Whiteblaze from folks that are constantly at the doctor or under the knife for one ailment after another.
Guess I'm just lucky.

My only occassion for hospitals over the past 63 years until yesterday was two motorcycle accidents. The wife finally nagged me enough to have a physical, part of which was a colonastropy, the doc said it was perfect, now the wife can say she's married to a perfect a$$ hole.

[RodentWhisperer]

...the human body is a complex system and there is much we do not know.

I couldn't have put it better myself, imscotty.

The gut biome and its species richness is an interesting (and some would say, Earth-shattering) area of study. We've known for a long time that our guts are filled with microflora, but we've only started thinking/studying it as if it were an ecological system. What's really going to change our way of thinking is that the current studies are (more or less) telling us that we have a genuinely symbiotic relationship with those microflora-- that we help them in much the same ways they help us, and that if either party in the relationship compromises the other, both suffer.

Bear in mind, of course, that I'm no MD, and I don't play one on TV. I only work with bacteriologists.

[cabbagehead]

It means you're capable of building more muscle than if you had a fast metabolism.

[Pedaling Fool]

Another reason I just keep it simple and eat all in moderation and vigorous exercise. And Mcdonald's double cheeseburger really are “the cheapest, most nutritious, and bountiful food that has ever existed in human history”

http://www.livescience.com/39097-bmi...h-measure.html


BMI Not a Good Measure of Healthy Body Weight, Researchers Argue


When it comes to defining what body weight is considered healthy, one type of measurement does not fit all, some scientists say.

Body mass index is the standard metric for determining who is normal-weight, overweight and obese, but BMI is not an accurate measure of fat, and doesn't explain the causes of poor health, scientists argue in an editorial today (Aug. 22) in the journal Science.

Obesity can be a major risk for diabetes, heart disease and death, yet paradoxically, some studies suggest being overweight can improve survival of chronic diseases.

"Most studies depend on BMI, and we know it's not a very accurate measure," said Dr. Rexford Ahima, a medical professor at the University of Pennsylvania, in Philadelphia, and co-author of the editorial. [8 Reasons Our Waistlines Are Expanding]

A person's BMI is calculated as her weight in kilograms divided by her height in meters, squared. A BMI of 18.5 to 24.9 is considered "normal," a BMI of 25 to 29.9 is "overweight," and a BMI greater than 30 is "obese."

People with BMIs higher than 30 are at an increased risk of dying from heart disease, diabetes, cancer and other diseases, many studies have shown. But several recent studies suggest that in some cases, a high BMI could actually protect a person from dying of heart failure, kidney failure and other chronic diseases.

When someone has a chronic illness, having more fat could possibly provide additional energy reserves. And in some cases, a low BMI may be a result of a person having an illness.

The health risks and benefits of obesity have generated "a lot of sniping back and forth between different groups of researchers," Ahima told LiveScience.

The problem stems from the fact that BMI is an inaccurate measure of health, Ahima said.

For one thing, BMI doesn't take into account fat, and it doesn't indicate where fat is distributed on the body. Belly fat (fat around the abdominal organs) increases the risk of diabetes, heart disease and death, whereas peripheral fat (fat beneath the skin elsewhere in the body) may be more innocuous, studies suggest. BMI also fails to account for differences in race, gender and age.

So why is the measurement so widely used? "Because it's simple," Ahima said, adding that it's easy to weigh people and measure their height. For most people, BMI provides a "reasonable measure" of body fat, but is not accurate for athletes (who weigh more because of muscle) or older people who have lost height, he said.

Other methods of measuring body fat also have their pros and cons. CT and MRI scans can accurately measure body fat, but are usually very expensive. DEXA scans, normally used to measure bone density, can also be used to measure body fat, but are costly as well. Measuring levels of the hormone leptin can also be an indicator of body fat.

There's no single number that can represent a healthy weight, Ahima said. It depends on starting weight, genetics and gender, among other factors.

Obesity is a complex disorder — it's not just having too much fat, he said. It's important to consider fat in relation to the amount of muscle.

And scientists need to start looking more closely at cause-and-effect in body fat and disease, Ahima said. "What is it about being obese that makes one unhealthy or healthy? We need to understand the molecular mechanisms."