Victoria Allen, Science Correspondent For The Daily Mail
34
View
comments
It is the time of year when many of us over-indulge, only to try to shed the weight in the New Year.
But yo-yo dieting can make us fatter because of the caveman in us, scientists say.
Changes in dieting convince our hunter-gatherer brains that food supplies are unreliable – and so they prepare for ‘famine’ by telling our bodies to store extra fat, much like birds fattening up before winter. The result is ‘a spiral of dieting and weight gain’, researchers from Bristol and Exeter universities say.
Scroll down for video
Changes in dieting convince our hunter-gatherer brains that food supplies are unreliable – and so they prepare for ‘famine’ by telling our bodies to store extra fat
And those who yo-yo diet tend to gain more weight overall than those who never diet at all, they found. Dr Andrew Higginson, senior lecturer in psychology at Exeter, said: ‘This happens because non-dieters learn the food supply is reliable so there is less need for the insurance of fat stores.’
The findings came from a mathematical model of animal responses to food supply. The study suggests we use energy now in a similar way to hunter-gatherer humans, who lived more than 12,000 years ago and needed to build up fat supplies to avoid starving in winter.
-
Nap to fire up energy levels, hug to calm worries and sing…
Overweight woman who spent her life being compared to her…
The researchers modelled how our brains respond to a ‘good world’, where food is rarely scarce, and a ‘bad world’, where the supply is unreliable. Yo-yo dieting, the model predicts, convinces us we are in a bad world, like our ancestors were.
The brain then sends messages to the body to build up fat, so that, even if they lose weight on a diet, yo-yo slimmers often gain more overall, the study, published in the journal Evolution, Medicine and Public Health, found.
And those who yo-yo diet tend to gain more weight than those who never diet at all
Professor John McNamara, a mathematician at Bristol University, said: ‘Our model shows weight gain does not mean people’s physiology is malfunctioning or that they are being overwhelmed by unnaturally sweet tastes … but uncertainty about the food supply triggers the evolved response to gain weight.’
The odds are against slimmers, the team said, because those who were overweight beforehand received brain signals of a ‘glut’ of food, causing it to overcompensate further when a diet suggests food is in short supply. And the hunter-gatherer response to the ‘famine’ of a diet can cause binge-eating afterwards, as it drives us to eat high-calorie food.
Dr Higginson said: ‘The best thing for weight loss is to take it steady. Eating only slightly less, all the time, and doing exercise is much more likely to help you reach a healthy weight than low-calorie diets.’
A separate study last month found weight gain from yo-yo dieting may be fuelled by bacteria in our guts, suggesting a probiotic drink could reverse the effect.
Share or comment on this article
-
e-mail
-
Desperate families and friends of party-goers missing after…
-
‘Roo want a piece of me? Kangaroo grabs a dog in a headlock…
-
Pictured: Twelve victims identified as firefighters recover…
-
Is Europe’s Brexit revolution over? Gloating left-wing…
-
Teenage Afghan immigrant is arrested in Germany after the…
-
‘Totally biased, not funny and the Baldwin impression just…
-
Victory! Dakota Access protesters WIN as Obama…
-
Fury at the man behind illegal artist enclave where up to 33…
-
Uber can now track passengers’ locations after they are…
-
EXCLUSIVE: The ‘arrogant’ man behind illegal artist enclave…
-
Body of woman who ‘disappeared while jogging in Florida is…
-
Last Tango in Paris rape scene WAS non-consensual: Director…
Comments (34)
Share what you think
-
Newest -
Oldest -
Best rated -
Worst rated
The comments below have not been moderated.
The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.
Find out now