The Obesity Crisis Today – Genetics vs. Diet and Lifestyle

Obesity today has become a public health crisis. With over 1/3 of Americans being obese and 2/3rds of Americans being overweight the health of our nation is taking a toll.  Along with excess weight on the body comes many other diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, hypertension and many more.

It is truly amazing how simple the concept of weight loss seems and how complicated it truly is. Calories in calories out really is only a very tiny sliver of the pie. Most weight loss plans focus on changing dietary habits and adding in some exercise and this can surely reduce body weight and improve your metabolic health.  However, for many people even with a change in diet and an increase in exercise there is a plateau to the amount of weight they can lose.

What I have seen in my years of facilitating the

and helping patients lose weight is that losing weight is a mix of environmental, behavioral, lifestyle and genetic factors.

Genetics plays a really important role in body composition.  Genetics can be a determining factor in where our body fat is stored.  There is also the concept of “set point” theory which determines what range your body likes to stay in.  Clinically, after facilitating the HCG Diet with over a thousand patients, I can say that “set points” are extremely powerful and quite a challenge to break through on any weight loss plan.  I have also seen that set points can be shifted with dietary and environmental factors. Genetics surely plays a role but our lifestyle can also have a strong influence with consistency over time.

The FTO (“fatso gene”) is a genetic variant that has been associated with a greater likelihood of being overweight. It is a gene that is being highly studied at this time. They say carriers of the FTO gene are likely to be 6.1 lbs more than those who do not carry the gene.  However, they also say that dietary and lifestyle changes have the same impact on those with or without the gene!

The Behavioral and Learned Aspect of Diet and Lifestyle

The way we grew up eating and the values, attitude and beliefs that our families taught us about food go deep.   So, perhaps you have inherited these behaviors towards diet and wellness; however, the amazing thing about being human is that we can work to change these behaviors and trade them in for healthier ones!  You may have a set of genes that create a bit more of a struggle, however; your body composition, dietary and exercise habits are up to you.