Why are we getting fatter and fatter, as a society? In Nature’s infinite wisdom, survival of the fittest may have been in fact survival of the fattest. No wonder we are in the midst of a growing obesity epidemic.
We are the product of our genetic inheritance. The obesity epidemic is in large part driven by similar mechanisms that ensured the survival of our Paleolithic hunter-gatherer ancestors some 40,000 years ago. Those of us who are predisposed to fat storage and weight gain may possess a special gene that promotes cravings and fat storage. Selective breeding over the millennia ensured the survival of those individuals (2/3's of Americans) which carry that special frugal gene which helped our ancestors make it through periods of drought and food scarcity.
Today however, this same mechanism is compromising our health as food is in abundance year round - and we don’t burn many calories driving to the grocery store. I remember my wife Genoa attending a speaking engagement I had in Seattle for Mannatech (a leading nutracetical company). She wasn’t feeling well until we go to the Mall, when she proclaimed “I FEEL ALIVE!” No wonder; what a great place to hunt and gather.
This theory is supported by a new study that suggests genetic and heritability may account for 77% of obesity, while environmental factors make up less than 25% according. Researchers at the University College London (UCL) reported after studying 5,092 twin pairs of children, that although contemporary environments have made today’s children fatter than 20 years ago, the primary explanation for variations within the population, then and now, is genetic differences between individual children (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, February 2008, Volume 87, No2).
Coomenting on the study, Dr. David Ludwig* of Harvard Medical School stated: “The bottom line is we can’t change our genes, but we can change our environment where we and our kids spend much of our time. ‘Protecting the home environment’ is in fact the primary parenting practice we recommend in our 9-week family weight loss program here at the Children’s Hospital Boston.”
Clearing your home of high GI snacks and replacing them with fresh fruit and vegetables is a good start on changing your home environment. If on-the-go garb and give your kids a nutritionally balanced Low GI nutrition bar. Dr. Ludwig is lead investigator of a new study that uses SoLo Gi® Nutrition Bars in a Low GI diet to prevent maternal gestational diabetes and a disposition to infant obesity and diabetes early in life.
*David Ludwig, M.D., Ph.D. Endocrinologist at Harvard Medical School and Director of the Optimal Weight for Life Program, Children’s Hospital Boston. Author of Ending the Food Fight, Guide Your Child to a Healthy Weight in a Fast Food / Fake Food World (2007) “Dr. Ludwig pioneered the use of a Low Glycemic Diet in Combating Obesity.”
Low Glycemic Index (GI) and Low Glycemic Load (GL) foods have been proven in studies to be beneficial: dieting; weight loss; obesity; diabetes; balancing blood sugar; sustained energy; sport nutrition; mental performance; acne; eye health; macular degeneration; heart disease and forms of cancer. See also Low GI Diet, Low GI Recipes, Low GI Food, Low GI Eating.
Copyright 2008, Saul Katz
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