Fighting Fat Genetics With Exercise

Posted by: Curt | Under: 40's/fit, 50's/fit, Children/fit, Diet and Weight Loss, General Fitness, Health, Ladies/fit, Prime/fit, Quick Tips, Seniors/fit, Sports, Supplements, Travel/fit, Youth/fit | (0) Comments

OK, this goes in the “duh, common sense” category, but the science behind it is still interesting. Apparently, some people have a gene that predisposes them to being overweight or obese. The study done on the hard working Amish people simply shows that exercise (like hard work) overcomes the genetic flaw.You are not a slave to your genes!

Maybe you CAN blame being fat on your genes. But there’s a way to overcome that family history — just get three to four hours of moderate activity a day.

Sound pretty daunting?

Not for the Amish of Lancaster County, Pa., who were the focus of a new study on a common genetic variation that makes people more likely to gain weight. It turns out the variant’s effects can be blocked with physical activity — lots of it.

…The researchers found that Amish people with the genetic variant were no more likely to be overweight than those who had the regular version of the gene — as long as they got three to four hours of moderate activity every day. That included things like brisk walking, housecleaning and gardening.

And while physical activity is recommended for just about everyone, the study suggests that people with the gene variation need to be especially vigilant about getting exercise.

“These findings emphasize the important role of physical activity in public health efforts to combat obesity, particularly in genetically susceptible people,” the authors wrote in Monday’s Archives of Internal Medicine.

This is good news since a lot of people think that they are doomed to being fat. It is bad news since most people are lazy and still won’t do anything. Certainly one of the biggest problems we face as a society and culture is our prosperity- which obviously has the effect of killing us with diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke, etc. When food is plentiful, cheap and very high in calories (sugar and fat) while at the same time we really need to do nothing physical to obtain that food, the result is exactly what we see in America today. And it is spreading around the world at an alarming pace. So remember, It is always diet and exercise- even if you have the “fat gene”.