Do you like to travel? Is your friend obese? If so, science says you could be gaining weight right now...
By Francie Diep Posted 03.12.2013 at 1:00 pm 7 Comments

American flag
American flag Moving to America from another country with lower obesity rates is associated with weight gain. Wikimedia Commons

Ever read the comments section of an article about obesity in America? (Hello, calling the Hairpin.) If you've somehow escaped the experience, I advise you to continue escaping it. Otherwise, you probably already know there's always someone who says something like, "It's just about calories in versus calories out! So get off the couch already!"

It's not that simple, of course. There are actually a lot of sort of weird things that are associated with weight gain and obesity, not least of which is where your calories actually come from.

One of those weird things is how much sleep you get, which researchers have known about for years. In 2004, the leaders of the Wisconsin Sleep Cohort Study reported that those who slept less than five hours a night had different levels of hormones that signal fullness than those who slept an average of eight hours. And sleep and nutrition scientists are still studying the phenomenon: A study published today in the Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences looks at energy intake and expenditure in adults on different sleep schedules over two weeks. (Turns out those who got less sleep used more calories, but also ate more, gaining 1.8 pounds on average.)

What other nonintuitive things have been associated with weight gain?

Having obese friends.

Traveling too much, or not at all.

Not having dinners together with your family, if you're a kid.

Apparently just moving to America from another country with lower obesity rates.

What does all this mean? Well, there are a lot of things in people's environments that affect how easy it is for them to maintain a healthy weight. Numerous studies show that lifestyle changes and social support can help people maintain significant weight loss, as the Columbia Journalism Review explained in January. Many of those changes have to do with tweaking triggers in your environment.

7 Comments

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AnyIcon
03/12/13 at 1:18 pm

Manufactured, process food, high carbohydrates and sugars are with our lovely USA society. And in third world countries were this is absent, being overweight is absent as well....... in my opinion.

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bgdavison
03/12/13 at 4:02 pm

So, it really isn't as easy as energy in/energy out, but the other associated trends you list actually speak to this notion:
Obese friends - peer pressure to overeat/not work out
Traveling too much - eating high calorie "easy" foods/sitting while in airplane, train, car, etc.
Traveling none - sedentary lifestyle
No family dinners - lack of parental pressure to eat right
Living in America - availability to massive abundance of food.

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killerT
03/12/13 at 4:02 pm

There may be many factors associated with weight gain, but it still always comes down to "calories in versus calories out!"
Yes it is that simple!
The problem is people are not willing and/or able to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
Do you know what I did when my weight started to climb uncontrollably? I Stopped Eating So Much.
Try it sometime people.
Or just forget everything I just said, because overweight people are a great source of income for me. lol

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flapinux
03/12/13 at 4:09 pm

HFCS is a big one:
www uctv tv / shows / Sugar-The-Bitter-Truth-16717

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m3talc0re
03/12/13 at 4:16 pm

Lol, you rich people... Read #5 because it is very much part of the problem: www.cracked.com/blog/the-5-stupidest-habits-you-develop-growing-up-poor/

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matsci1
03/13/13 at 8:56 am

Well said Killer T.

When I was in my 20´s I was very, very active in sports and physical labor. If I did not eat a high calorie diet my 225lb body weight would drop really fast. I did not eat health food either… Whoppers, Big Macs, hot dogs with cheese, Macaroni and cheese, cheese with cheese (I love cheese)…it did not matter. I burned it fast.

Now I am getting to the end of my 40´s and I sit at a desk just about all day. Needless to say, I needed to bring the calorie intake into proportion with the activity level or I would have gained a lot of weight.

It is very simple. There are only two adjustment screws: Calorie intake and Calories used…just like a bank account.

However, most people do not want to hear that because it involves that unpopular concept of self discipline.

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efruntz
03/13/13 at 8:21 pm

its all about sugar and calories. A lot of people dont know that carbs are broken down to sugars in your body. Eat more nutrients and less calories by simply only eating foods that are not packaged.


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