Posted on 08/13/2006 11:49:02 AM PDT by neverdem
In the 30-plus years that Richard Atkinson has been studying obesity, he has always maintained that overeating doesn’t really explain it all. His epiphany came early in his career, when he was a medical fellow at U.C.L.A. engaged in a study of people who weighed more than 300 pounds and had come in for obesity surgery. “The general thought at the time was that fat people ate too much,” Atkinson, now at Virginia Commonwealth University, told me recently. “And we documented that fat people do eat too much — our subjects ate an average of 6,700 calories a day. But what was so impressive to me was the fact that not all fat people eat too much.”
One of Atkinson’s most memorable patients was Janet S., a bright, funny 25-year-old who weighed 348 pounds when she finally made her way to U.C.L.A. in 1975. In exchange for agreeing to be hospitalized for three months so scientists could study them, Janet and the other obese research subjects (30 in all) each received a free intestinal bypass. During the three months of presurgical study, the dietitian on the research team calculated how many calories it should take for a 5-foot-6-inch woman like Janet to maintain a weight of 348. They fed her exactly that many calories — no more, no less. She dutifully ate what she was told, and she gained 12 pounds in two weeks — almost a pound a day.
“I don’t think I’d ever gained that much weight that quickly,” recalled Janet, who asked me not to use her full name because she didn’t want people to know how fat she had once been. The doctors accused her of sneaking snacks into the hospital. “But I told them, ‘I’m gaining weight because you’re feeding me a tremendous amount...’”
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
I cannot read more at the NYT because THEY won't let me and I will NOT give the traitors my name. ;)
What was making her gain weight? Just give me a summary, please.
"But if they watch their diet, and if they exercise, they can avoid it.”
Brilliant!! /s
unlikeliest of culprits: the microorganisms we encounter every day
1. Oh how I hate the BMI! The MSM ought to kill that thing. I'm 6' tall, 210 pounds, and have flat abs... but I'm consdiered "overweight" by the BMI. I rode 92 miles yesterday on my bike. Lance Amrstrong and Dubyar are both considered overweight too.
2. We've all known for years that some people can eat everything and never gain a pound, while others seem to gain a pound for every french fry. We've thought it was genetic, or maybe metabolism in the past. If ulcers (long thought to be caused by stress) can be caused by little germs, why can't obesity?
I remember a girl in high school that was 5'8" and about 275 lbs. At recess and lunch, all she had was a diet Mountain Dew. I remember wondering how many calories she'd have to have during breakfast and dinner to maintain that kind of weight on a teenager's metabolism.
It's multifactorial, i.e. history of obesity, predominance of what gut microflora, type 36 adenovirus infection, 50 genes, etc.
"I remember wondering how many calories she'd have to have during breakfast and dinner to maintain that kind of weight on a teenager's metabolism."
My father's side of the family are mostly obese. The answer is (like the article said) that they generally have lower caloric intake. I ate more than my father (300 pounds, give or take) starting in the third grade, and at age 18 (when I was 6' tall and 160 pounds) doubled his intake.
If the NYTimes would drop its political bias, I'd buy a subscription for articles like this one.
Then again, if CNN would drop its bias, it would have great news coverage. It was clearly the best during Katrina, before it found its bias again.
Then again, if a frog had a tail it wouldn't bump its butt when it hopped. If my sister had a penis she'd be my brother. If....
Invariably, the anti-BMI people will point out some professional wrestler or football player that has a high BMI but the fact is, those professional wrestlers and football work out for hours each day which is something Mr. Couch Potato doesn't do. Also, these professional atheletes have to retire someday and when they do, it all catches up to them pretty quickly unless they change their ways and get that BMI down.
I agree! Great article! I learned more from that than any 50 articles.
The article is 32,511 words long and you want a summary?
Here, courtesy of http://www.bugmenot.com/view/nytimes.com
Username: tonemgub7
Password: tonemgub
Go enjoy.
"Actually the BMI is a pretty good indicator of your general health. "
No, it's not.
Body fat percentage is a "pretty good indicator". The BMI approximates that number, but obviously it's a poor indicator. It is a crude method that supposedly replaces much more precise (but more costly) methods, such as the dunk tank method, or even the skin pinch test. The BMI is akin to saying that we know the condition of an automobile by looking at the tires.
Athletes blow the scale out of the water due to muscle mass, especially those who have massive leg muscles (bicyclist, including Lance and Dubya and me).
In addition, different ethnicities experience health effects at different BMIs as their body responds differently to fat mass and body build. Oriental people, for instance, run into health problems at a lower BMI than causasians.
It's free. You just have to register, not subscribe to Times Select. You can also use http://www.bugmenot.com/view/www.nytimes.com
"It's free. You just have to register, not subscribe to Times Select...."
I know, I've had the web login about as long as I've had the FreeRepublic login.
Thanks.
Tim
This is a bit redundant with post 15, but it's worth clarifying that BMI is NOT a diagnostic tool. IOW, you can't use it as anything more than a screening tool for individuals.
From the CDC website:
BMI is used as a screening tool to identify possible weight problems for adults. However, BMI is not a diagnostic tool. For example, a person may have a high BMI. However, to determine if excess weight is a health risk, a healthcare provider would need to perform further assessments. These assessments might include skinfold thickness measurements, evaluations of diet, physical activity, family history, and other appropriate health screenings.
link:
http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/bmi/adult_BMI/about_adult_BMI.htm
"...but it's worth clarifying that BMI is NOT a diagnostic tool."
Bingo.
The BMI was put together out of height-weight tables that were put together by entities (insurance companies and public heath companies looking for funding) that have financial reasons to find the greatest number of people to be overweight.
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