There’s a reason why losing weight is so difficult. It has nothing to do with diet or exercise frequency.
That’s because your cells remember that you’re obese and actively resist your efforts to lose weight, according to a study published in the journal Science. nature. “The body appears to retain a memory of obesity that protects against changes in body weight,” said the study, which tracked the progress of previously obese mice and compared both mice to mice with no history of obesity. I also noticed that I was gaining weight quickly. High fat diet.
“From an evolutionary perspective, this makes sense: Food scarcity has been a common challenge historically, so humans and other animals have adapted to protect their weight rather than lose it. ,” said Dr. Laura Hinte, lead author of the study. Guardian.
getty
And, as Professor Ferdinand von Mayen, senior author of the study from the Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, put it, the obesity trend is happening at the molecular level, the newspaper reports. Initial weight loss is difficult because your fat cells remember your previous state of obesity and are likely trying to return to this state. Memory appears to prime cells to respond to sugars and fatty acids more quickly, and perhaps in an unhealthy way. ”
And because people have to actively fight against cellular memory, the study says, this leads to “the problematic ‘yo-yo’ effect commonly seen in diets.”
PEOPLE Puzzler Crossword is here! How fast can you solve it? Play now!
getty
But researchers said that memory may not be permanent.
“Maintaining a reduced or healthy weight for an extended period of time may be enough to erase the memory,” Hinte said, according to the newspaper’s report.
The study concludes that because “obesity and its associated comorbidities represent significant health risks,” “targeting these changes in the future may improve long-term weight management and health outcomes.” ” states.
Never miss a story — sign up PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter From celebrity news to captivating and interesting stories, stay up to date with the best of what PEOPLE has to offer.
