According to a recent study, if a person is overweight for a long time, losing that weight may be more difficult as the lost pounds return quickly.
A new research, a joint project between the University of Michigan and the Argentina-based National Council of Science and Technology (CONICET) found that if a person who has been overweight for years, may found it more difficult to lose weight and maintain the lighter weight. Also, those extra pounds lost through exercising and diet are likely to return more quickly.
Researchers explain that over time, the unchanging obese state of overweight mice altered the animal's normal body weight set point to a permanently elevated level, making it difficult for the mice to keep weight off, despite enduring a previously successful diet regime.
"Our model demonstrates that obesity is in part a self-perpetuating disorder and the results further emphasize the importance of early intervention in childhood to try to prevent the condition whose effects can last a lifetime," said senior author Malcolm J. Low, M.D., Ph.D., professor of molecular and integrative physiology and internal medicine. "Our new animal model will be useful in pinpointing the reasons why most adults find it exceedingly difficult to maintain meaningful weight loss from dieting and exercise alone."
The findings of this study question the long-term effects of weight loss programs like "Biggest Loser" and the efforts that people take later in their life, such as extreme regimens.
"Somewhere along the way, if obesity is allowed to continue, the body appears to flip a switch that re-programs to a heavier set weight," Low said. "The exact mechanisms that cause this shift are still unknown and require much further study that will help us better understand why the regaining of weight seems almost unavoidable."
The study appears online ahead of print Oct. 24 in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.
