Why did they lose more weight than me?

[Guest guest]

Dr. K has addressed the subject line question numerous times over the

years. In the last " Beyond Change " there was an article with that

title, written by Buffington, Ph.D.

I'll try to share with you the " bottom line " of the article.

1. Even small differences in Daily calorie intake will add up and

have an impact.

2. Type of foods eaten has an impact. Sugar/carbs will slow weight

loss...eating protein helps weight-loss. Besides the Calories being

absorbed in Sugar/carbs...it creates an insulin response in the

body. Our bodies use insulin to STORE fat, not to release it. So in

the presence of insulin we will have a harder time losing weight.

3. Exercise and eating protein help to build/retain muscle mass. We

burn more calories and therefore lose more weight even at rest with

muscles mass. Muscle mass equals metabolism. A high metabolism

burns fat.

4. Medications can affect weight-loss. Most Diabetes medications

(except metformin) cause fat accumulation and weight gain, including

insulin, sulfonylureas and the thiazolidinediones. Many anti-

depressions medications or mood stabilizers also cause weight gain,

especially lithium and tricyclic antidepressants. In addition

Steroids used to treat osteoarthritis or autoimmune disorders

increase body weight. as do beta blockers and calcium channel

blockers for hypertension.

5. Genetics, hormone production, neurochemicals that regulate food

intake, satiety....

6. Body composition. Folks who carry most of their weight in the mid-

section will lose weight easier than folks who carry weight in the

hips and legs. Deep Abdominal (visceral) fat has a MUCH higher rate

of turnover than fat that is deposited on the hips and thighs. For

this reason, larger amounts of abdominal visceral fat are lost with

calorie restriction that are fat deposits on the hips and thighs. A

person with abdominal obesity, therefore, is likely to lose weight

more rapidly on a diet or after surgery than would someone with fat

on the hips.

7. Men tend to store much larger amounts of fat in abdominal visceral

adipose depots than females, plus they have larger amounts of muscle

mass...for this reason, men are generally able to lose weight more

rapidly than females.

Hope I did a fair job of summarizing the article.

Hugs

Jo