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Did You Inherit "Fat Genes?"
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"Battle Your Biology? Fat Chance," proclaims a recent headline in the health
section of a popular newspaper. Quoting new research and citing psychologists,
dietitians and physicians, the article says that more and more evidence proves
that your weight is genetically determined, and if you're fat, "it's not your
fault." "We've known for a while that genes - more than environment and behavior
- explain obesity" argues Dr. James Rosen, an eating disorder specialist and
professor at the University of Vermont. While genetics are definitely a factor,
believing you are destined to be overweight for life because you've inherited
"fat genes" is the most disempowering and self-defeating attitude you could ever
adopt. The only way you’ll lose weight permanently is to accept total
responsibility for yourself and acknowledge the fact that you have the power to
change, regardless what mother nature has given you to work with.
There's no denying that heredity plays a major role in how difficult it will be
for you to lose fat. You inherited a body type, a predetermined number of fat
cells, a metabolic rate and body chemistry just as you inherited your eye color
and hair color. In the 1930's, Harvard psychologist Dr. William H. Sheldon
developed a classification system for these different body types called
"somatotyping." While there are no absolutes, Sheldon identified three basic
somatotypes: ectomorphs, mesomorphs and endomorphs. Ectomorphs are the lean,
lanky types. They are usually very thin and bony, with fast metabolisms and
extremely low body fat. An ectomorph can eat like a horse without gaining an
ounce. Mesomorphs are the "genetically gifted." They are lean, muscular and
naturally athletic. Mesomorphs lose fat and gain muscle with ease. Endomorphs
are the "fat retainers." Characterized by round features, excess body fat and
large joints ("big bones"), endomorphs usually have great difficu!
lty in losing body fat. They have slow metabolisms, they are often carbohydrate
sensitive, they gain fat quickly if they eat poorly or don't exercise, and they
lose fat slowly - even on a healthy diet.
The tendency of endomorphs to store fat easily can be partly attributed to
metabolic problems. For example, endomorphs often metabolize carbohydrates
inefficiently. Normal people can eat lots of carbohydrates - up to 60% of their
total calories - and they still stay lean. Endomorphs produce too much insulin
when they eat carbohydrates and this leads to increased fat storage and
difficulty in losing existing fat. This condition is known as "insulin
resistance" or "Syndrome X."
Scientists claim that the tendency to gain weight easily may also be due to
chemical imbalances in the brain that cause people to overeat. Researchers at
Johns Hopkins recently announced the discovery a compound called C75, that
blocks an appetite-regulating hormone in the hypothalamus. In mice injected with
the substance, 30 percent more weight was lost because the drug caused the mice
to eat less. More research is planned to develop a similar appetite-suppressing
drug for humans. Unlike Xenical, which blocks fat absorption in the intestine,
this new drug would affect the brain's chemistry so that people feel full
sooner.
Many physicians and health professionals consider these metabolic disorders and
chemical imbalances as genetically transmitted "diseases" that require medical
treatment. "Obesity is a disease and should be treated like one" says Jackie
Newgent, spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association . This idea should
be viewed with a great deal of suspicion however, because weight loss is
potentially the biggest market in the world for drug sales. According to Justin
Gillis, a staff writer for the Washington Post, more than 45 companies worldwide
are trying to develop new obesity drugs, and the stakes couldn't be higher.
Gillis writes, "In world where a blockbuster drug is worth $1 billion a year in
sales, analysts give $5 billion as the low estimate for sales of an important
obesity drug. If a company developed a truly safe, effective weight loss drug,
and sold it for $3 a day to one quarter of the 97 million American adults
estimated to be overweight, sales would exceed $26 bi!
llion a year in this country alone."
Basically, what the medical community is trying to tell you is that if you are
overweight, it's not your fault; you were born fat, so don't feel guilty - and
don't worry, we have a drug that can "cure" you. Sounds like there's an ulterior
motive at work here, wouldn't you agree? Before you run to get a prescription
for the next "miracle" drug, you'd better wonder whose interests are being
served; yours or the pharmaceutical giants. Besides, drugs can never be the
solution if they treat the symptoms and not the cause. Drugs should be
considered a last resort for the morbidly obese who have already tried
everything else without success and who will face serious health consequences if
they don't lose weight. The editors of obesity.com said it best: "Weight loss
drugs do not take the place of diet, exercise, patience, and perseverance."
"Dieting can be an uphill battle against your genes." says Post writer Joyce
Cohen. Unfortunately, if you're an endomorph, Cohen is right. Losing weight is
definitely easier for some people than for others and that doesn't seem fair.
But that's the way life is. Life isn't fair. Let's be honest; not everyone is
going to become an Olympic Gold medallist, a Mr. America or a fitness model. But
don't despair - you are not doomed to live a life of fatness if you don't have
"athletic genes."
Obesity is the result of many influences. Genetics is only one of them. Like it
or not, the primary cause of obesity is your own behavior. Most of the factors
that affect body composition are entirely under your control. These factors
include how much you eat, what you eat, when you eat, what type of exercise you
do, how frequently you exercise, how long you exercise and how hard you
exercise.
If you have the genetic predisposition towards obesity, you can lose fat like
everyone else, you're just going to have to work harder and longer at it than
other people. "There is a genetic component to weight," Says Dr. Thomas Wadden,
a psychologist from Syracuse University, "but no one is destined to be obese. If
weight has been a major problem in your family, you may not be able to become as
thin as you'd like, but you can lose weight."
If you find losing weight to be a slow and difficult process, the empowering
thing to do is to look at it as asset, because overcoming this obstacle will
force you to develop discipline, determination and persistence. These traits
will carry over to other areas of your life and make you a stronger person all
around. Arnold Schwarzennegger said, "Strength does not come from winning. Your
struggles develop your strength. When you overcome hardships, that is strength."
The first thing you must do if you want to lose weight or succeed in any area of
your life, is to accept complete responsibility for your situation. In a short
but powerful little book called "As Man Thinketh," the author James Allen wrote,
"circumstances do not make a man, they reveal him." What he meant was that we
are not products of our environment or our heredity (our "circumstances"),
instead, we products of our own thinking and belief systems. We create our own
circumstances through positive thinking and positive action and we create
negative circumstances through negative thinking and lack of action or wrong
actions. In other words, we are responsible for where we are, what we have and
how our bodies look.
Some people get very angry with me when I tell them this: They say, "Wait a
minute, Tom. Are you trying to tell me that when bad things happen to me, it’s
my own fault? That I brought unemployment, financial hardships, failed
relationships, weight gain or even health problems onto myself? Because if
that's what you're saying, that's totally unfair!"
Well, my friend, with very few exceptions, (some things really are out of your
control) that is exactly what I am saying.
If you refuse to accept the fact that you are 100% responsible, you will never
be successful. When people find themselves in undesirable situations or they
aren't getting the results they want, it’s all too easy to make excuses: It's my
genetics, I have big bones, I have a slow metabolism, I don't have enough time
to exercise, etc. etc., etc. Making excuses is relinquishing control. It is
conceding that you a victim of circumstances instead of the creator of your
circumstances. Stop blaming and start taking responsibility for your life. Take
action! Start working out. Eat better. Do something - do anything - but don't
just sit there on the couch and curse your chromosomes.
So, are you a frustrated "endomorph?" Do you feel like dieting is an uphill
battle against your genes? If your answer is "yes," please don’t just quit and
chalk in up to "bad genetics," and don't believe that drugs are the answer
either - they're not. Your genetics will largely dictate your athletic ability
and how easily you will lose weight. That doesn't mean you can't get lean; it
only means that you're going to have to work harder and be more persistent than
the genetically gifted people. You're also going to have to adjust your diet and
training to fit your body type. Maybe obesity really should be classified as a
genetically inherited "disease." But frankly, if you have a "disease" that
forces you to learn more about exercise and nutrition, to eat nutritious foods,
to adopt a healthier lifestyle, to develop a strong work ethic and to become a
more persistent person, that sounds like a blessing in disguise to me.
Tom Venuto
) It is starting to make sense to me. I did get a multivitamin today and flax seed oil and folic acid. I no longer take the Xenical, though still have some left. We are trying for #3 and so i don't want to take any medicine.
Hello Ladies
Spent 2 hrs getting it removed. Seems that everything with the computer is fine again now tho, thank goodness. 
Will definitely get a good walk in the morning..supposed to be cooler and wont have to be in a hurry to finish.
I might have to take it in to a detailer and have it done if the weather ceases to cooperate...although I think its fun and good exercise to do it yourself.
and as you may remember..I pass one everyday on the way to and from work...ah the temptations one faces on the road to better health.
I have been very bad with the exercising...I havent done any intentional exercising in over a week...but tonight...this is gonna change...I will cycle for sure. 
great article
I haven't started any diet yet, I want to read the book first and understand it before I dive into anything. So, i will write when my mood is better:-) and hopefully my 5year old will still be alive then--ah! the joys of boys
