According to a study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, people who ate a 2000-calorie diet based only on food advertised on television would consume – on average – 25 times the recommended amount of sugar and 20 times the recommended amount of fat. The study also showed that the average product advertised on television contained above-average amounts of saturated fat and cholesterol and below-average amounts of beneficial nutrients like fiber, calcium and vitamin D. The money spent of food advertisements annually ranges from $7.3 to $11.6 billion – and we eat it up.

While we’re eating it up, more than 80% of us who lose weight gain it back. In fact, researchers at the University of California/Los Angeles analyzed 31 long-term, diet studies and found that about two-thirds of dieters regained more weight in 4-5 years than they had lost. One reason it’s hard to keep weight off is there’s a metabolic overcompensation for weight loss. Decreasing body mass by 10% results in an 11%-15% decrease in metabolism. Also, yo-yo dieting increases the hunger hormone ghrelin and decreases the fullness hormone leptin, making yo-yo dieters feel hungrier and less satiated. For yo-yo dieters there are strings attached.

And not all yo-yo dieters are created equal. Researchers at the University of California/San Francisco and Yale University found there’s a biological cause for some people to be “conditioned hypereaters”. The reward circuits in their brains are excessively activated by the smell of food and stay that way until their plates are empty. It’s estimated that 30% of overweight people and 50% of obese people are conditioned hypereaters. viagra Viagra Professional online no prescription However, in a study of 200 overweight and obese people, those given an extra hour of therapy instead of low-intensity exercise maintained their weight loss after a year. Instead, they had gained insight.

Yo-yo dieting is more than frustrating. It’s unhealthy. A study in Clinical Cardiology found that women who yo-yoed 5 times or more in their lifetime increased the risk of damaging their hearts. Yo-yo dieting also adversely affects the immune system. A study of 100 otherwise healthy women found that yo-yoing lowers immune function – specifically lowering the count of natural killer cells – cells important for fighting infection and the early stages of cancer. Women who yo-yoed at least 5 times decreased their natural killer-cell activity by one-third. Brand Cialis Considering the dangers, yo-yo dieters shouldn’t have a “weight-and-see” attitude.

Author Bio: Knight Pierce Hirst takes a second look at what makes life interesting and it takes only second at http://knightwatch.typepad.com

Category: Health
Keywords: yo-yo dieting,conditioned hypereaters