Prof Giles Yeo, a leading expert in the genetics of obesity at the University of Cambridge, shares top weight loss tips. Topics include the influence of genes on eating habits, prioritizing quality food over calories, typical weight gain and prevention, the relationship between exercise and weight loss, maintaining weight loss for overall health, and tips for finding the perfect diet.
Our genetics play a significant role in determining our food preferences and cravings, explaining why different individuals have varied behaviors around food and find it harder to resist certain foods.
The quality of the calories we consume is essential for optimal health and weight loss, as the nutritional content of the food affects how our bodies process and utilize those calories.
Exercise is crucial for weight maintenance after achieving weight loss, as it can temporarily increase metabolic rate, counter the drop in metabolic rate that occurs after weight loss, and provide mental health benefits for maintaining a healthy mindset.
Deep dives
The Influence of Genes on Eating Behavior and Weight Gain
Professor Giles Yeoh discusses his research on the genetics of obesity and how our genes affect our eating behavior and propensity for weight gain. He explains that while body weight is a matter of physics - eating more than we burn leads to weight gain, and vice versa - the variation lies in the why. Our genes play a significant role in determining our food preferences, cravings, and even our stress responses. Approximately half of our eating behavior is influenced by our genes. This understanding sheds light on the different behaviors people have around food and why some find it harder to say no to certain foods.
The Limitations of Counting Calories
Professor Yeoh emphasizes that while calories can give us an idea of how much food we're eating, they do not provide information about the nutritional content of that food. He explains that the quality of the calories we consume is essential, not just the quantity. For example, 200 calories of a chocolate bar is not the same as 200 calories of broccoli or steak. The nutritional content of the food we eat matters, as it affects how our bodies process and utilize those calories. Therefore, blindly focusing on calories alone may not lead to optimal health and weight loss.
Understanding Weight Gain as We Age
As we age, weight gain tends to be a common phenomenon due to various factors. Professor Yeoh explains that, on average, people gain 15 to 20 kilograms between the ages of 20 and 50. Shifts in lifestyle, such as sedentary jobs and increased income leading to richer foods, contribute to this weight gain. Additionally, metabolism naturally slows down as we get older. While it may be challenging to completely eliminate weight gain, we can aim to slow it down by making healthier choices, but completely eliminating it may be unrealistic.
The Role of Exercise in Weight Loss and Maintenance
Exercise plays a crucial role in weight maintenance once weight loss has been achieved. While exercise alone may not be the most effective tool for weight loss, it helps in keeping weight off after reaching the target weight. Professor Yeoh explains that exercise can temporarily increase metabolic rate and counter the natural drop in metabolic rate that occurs after weight loss. Additionally, exercise has mental health benefits and can help individuals maintain a healthy mindset while managing their weight. Therefore, incorporating exercise into a weight loss journey can aid in long-term success.
Personal Motivation and Finding the Right Diet
The key to successful weight loss is finding a diet that suits both individual biology and lifestyle. Professor Yeoh emphasizes that there is no one perfect diet that works for everyone. The focus should be on finding a diet that can be sustained long-term and is healthy. Eating habits should be tailored to individual dietary needs, such as protein and fiber intake, rather than blindly following the latest fad diets. The goal is to make sustainable dietary changes that improve health rather than solely focusing on weight loss.
In this series of special editions of BBC Radio 4 podcast Just One Thing, Michael Mosley quizzes the world’s leading health experts on the best ways to live well.
In this Weight Loss Special, we hear from Professor Giles Yeo, a leading expert in the genetics of obesity at the University of Cambridge.
We hear the top tips Professor Yeo swears by to help you shed the pounds. What’s the best way to lose weight? What should you be eating and how should you be exercising? And what’s the best way to keep it off?
And as this is a Just One Thing special, we'll end each interview by asking Professor Yeo for the one single most effective health hack to shift a few pounds.
Producer: Dom Byrne
Production Manager: Maria Simons
Exec Producer: Zoe Heron
Specially composed music by Richard Atkinson (Mcasso)
A BBC Studios production for BBC Sounds / BBC Radio 4.
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