Posted on 06/27/2019 10:54:12 AM PDT by BenLurkin
While other primates have less than 9% body fat, a healthy range for humans is anywhere from 14% to 31%.
Using a technique called ATAC-seq, they scanned each species' genome for differences in how their fat cell DNA is packaged.
Normally most of the DNA within a cell is condensed into coils and loops and tightly wound around proteins, such that only certain DNA regions are loosely packed enough to be accessible to the cellular machinery that turns genes on and off.
The researchers identified roughly 780 DNA regions that were accessible in chimps and macaques, but had become more bunched up in humans. Examining these regions in detail, the team also noticed a recurring snippet of DNA that helps convert fat from one cell type to another.
Not all fat is created equal... Most fat is made up of calorie-storing white fat. It's what makes up the marbling in a steak and builds up around our waistlines.
Specialized fat cells called beige and brown fat, on the other hand, can burn calories rather than store them to generate heat and keep us warm.
One of the reasons we're so fat, the research suggests, is because the regions of the genome that help turn white fat to brown were essentially locked up...in humans but not in chimps.
Humans, like chimps, need fat to cushion vital organs, insulate us from the cold, and buffer us from starvation. But early humans may have needed to plump up for another reason, the researchers sayas an additional source of energy to fuel our growing, hungry brains.
The human brain uses more energy, pound for pound, than any other tissue. Steering fat cells toward calorie-storing white fat rather than calorie-burning brown fat, the thinking goes, would have given our ancestors a survival advantage.
(Excerpt) Read more at phys.org ...
OMG. thank you for that much-needed laugh! Excellent.
*** “Cheeseburgers” ***
Ditch the Bun and Fries and you will lose weight, I can prove it!
Love my Protein-Style Double-Cheesburgers at In-N-Out Burger.
I can ditch the bun...but them fries: FMCDH!
*** “Love my Protein-Style Double-Cheesburgers at In-N-Out Burger” ****
You can make excellent wraps at home, the secret is Mayonnaise!
I make my own, many flavors, (Smoked Paprika and Garlic tastes like BBQ Potato Chips) Really good Fat (Avocado or Olive Oil) super easy to make.
We don’t have In-N-Out around here but Whataburger does a fair Wrap
How Beer Saved the World
That was the Wrong Link!
The Correct one is from Discovery Channel and it appears that they have pulled it and now Sell it...
Bootleg copies have crappy sound and break it up into 3 parts but from my short peruse may still be watchable for those that are not accustomed to the High Quality Original.
(Thanksgiving is not going to be the same unless Discovery Channel lets this Masterpiece go back to Public Domain)
The Aquatic Ape.
I have the book. Fascinating. Sure, it might be complete nonsense, but it was fascinating stuff.
https://www.amazon.com/Aquatic-Ape-Elaine-Morgan/dp/0812828739/
YUp!Increase of oral sex results in decrease in calories burned.....
There’s a good selection of videos on youtube also, if you search “aquatic ape.”
Some sacrifices must be made.
most of us won’t have to worry about this but-
A body fat percentage below 5 percent is regarded as a warning sign of poor health, even in elite athletes, says Georgie Fear, R.D...”
https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/15-negative-effects-of-having-a-low-body-fat-127106249953.html
A few of those under-5%ers got drafted fairly high in the NBA last week.
The first that I remember hearing of low body fat being dangerous was regarding a USC Trojan running back in the 1970s named Ricky Bell.
I had a buddy who worked in the clinic that served USC’s athletic department. It had a hydrostatic dip tank that measured body fat and IIRC Bell set the record for lowest % that they had ever recorded.
Bell went on to an NFL career, but fell ill and died very young at age 29. The reports were that his illness was connected to his extremely low percentage of body fat.
Extremes of most things are bad somehow, I guess.
But extremely low body fat is not something I personally have had to worry about!
(And I understand a bit of a reserve is good when fighting certain diseases, such as cancer.)
In March 1982, McKay sent him to the San Diego Chargers, but suffering from weight loss, aching muscles, and severe skin problems, he retired before the 1983 season.[3]
Death[edit]
Bell died at age 29 of heart failure caused by the disease of dermatomyositis.[1][2][3][4] Mario Van Peebles portrayed the player in the 1991 made-for-television movie, A Triumph of the Heart: The Ricky Bell Story, which was based on the life of Ricky Bell. Bell’s remains were interred in the Inglewood Park Cemetery in Inglewood, California.
He was survived by his wife, Natalia; his 10-year-old son, Ricky, Jr., a 3-year-old daughter, Noell, and his mother, Ruth.
The opera singer Maria Callas (19231977) suffered from dermatomyositis from 1975 until her death.[25]
The actor Laurence Olivier (19071989) suffered from dermatomyositis from 1974 until his death.[26]
The American football running back Ricky Bell (19551984), the runner-up for the Heisman Trophy in 1976, and the number-one choice in the NFL draft in 1977, died at the age of 29 from heart failure caused by this disease.[27]
Rob Buckman (19482011) a doctor, comedian, author, and the president of the Humanist Association of Canada.[28][29]
Yeah, most of us don’t need to worry about too little body fat.
The plus side is that fat does give you energy reserves if you come down with serious illness. But too much and you will likely be suffering from cardiovascular issues. Moderation in everything-
That’s the right Ricky Bell. That dermatomyositis is a brutal disease.
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