Why Can’t I Lose Weight?

If you’ve ever felt guilty about being above what you’re told is your healthy weight, consider this: it may not be entirely your fault.

Maybe it’s hereditary. Although we can’t ascribe all our weight gain to bad genes, there is some evidence that a genetic link could be involved. In some people, the satiety center in the brain can be faulty. The release of the hormones that are supposed to tell us we are full is delayed or even absent, so we continue eating to get that “full” feeling.

Could it be evolutionary? Some theorists propose that long ago human beings learned to eat as much as possible whenever food was available, because the food supply was not predictable. In our modern-day culture, however, there is always food to be had.

Who’s really in control? The more people eat, the more profits accrue to companies who manufacture and sell food. With the help of advertising, the act of eating has been turned into what some advertisers call “eatertainment.” We are encouraged to plan social events around food. Business meetings almost inevitably involve a meal. Gone are the social taboos against eating all the time—in your car, while at work, while walking down the street. And food is there for us in places it never used to be, like bookstores and hardware store counters. And while lawmakers may deplore our obesity epidemic and demand that something be done, they themselves find it challenging to confront the special interests that reap high profits by convincing us to eat more and more.

Are we addicted to food? Sounds silly, but it could be true. Where sugar was once used to sweeten virtually all our foods, manufacturers now use high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS). The problem with this substitution is that the body does not recognize HFCS as it does sugar when it comes to signaling to our brains that we have eaten enough. Also, HFCS has been added to foods that formerly had no sweeteners, such as tomato ketchup. When we add the fact that HFCS is in all soft drinks, and that Americans consume as much as seven percent of their daily calories via such drinks, it appears that we could truly be addicted to food without being aware of it. (There are people who are emotionally addicted to food, and doctors as well as groups like Overeater’s Anonymous are available to help guide them toward recovery.)

The Downside Of Technology
Ancient peoples and primitive societies did eat a lot. But they also burned up a lot of calories because they had to work to obtain their food. If they needed to travel, and they always did, they went by foot. As recently as our grandparents’ generation, preparing a meal involved shopping, washing the vegetables and chopping them, and actually cooking the food. Farmers had to chase down the chickens. And that was why inviting people to dine with you was such a generous offer. The meal itself was enjoyed at leisure and appreciated for the labor it had required. Technology has made meal preparation child’s play, at least for those who are willing to make do with pedestrian tastes.