“There are three types of lies -- lies, damn lies, and statistics.”
― Benjamin Disraeli
So, in my last post I made reference to the myth of "starvation mode" as it is propagated by the nutrition police. Today we are going to talk about 3 popular myths about how you "should" eat, where they came from and why they are TOTALLY wrong and are making Americans fatter, not healthier.
Myth number one: If you eat "too few" calories, your body will go into "starvation mode" and you will not be able to lose weight.
This has been cited so many times, it's hard to figure out where it came from. Looking through the science, one thing that stands out about this myth is that it is true for the underweight athlete. Unfortunately, studies consistently show that this effect is not applicable to the overweight or even the normal weight:
Reduced skeletal muscle mitochondrial respiration and improved glucose metabolism in nondiabetic obese women during a very low calorie dietary intervention leading to rapid weight loss
This study in particular looked at 32 year old women kept on a 550 calorie diet for 53 days. What they found is that they lost 11% of their body weight with no change in their mitochondrial citrate synthase activity (a marker for metabolism.) No starvation mode. But, GREAT weight loss! :)
This has been cited so many times, it's hard to figure out where it came from. Looking through the science, one thing that stands out about this myth is that it is true for the underweight athlete. Unfortunately, studies consistently show that this effect is not applicable to the overweight or even the normal weight:
Reduced skeletal muscle mitochondrial respiration and improved glucose metabolism in nondiabetic obese women during a very low calorie dietary intervention leading to rapid weight loss
This study in particular looked at 32 year old women kept on a 550 calorie diet for 53 days. What they found is that they lost 11% of their body weight with no change in their mitochondrial citrate synthase activity (a marker for metabolism.) No starvation mode. But, GREAT weight loss! :)
Myth B: You have to eat every 2 hours to keep your metabolism "up"
This one first took life in the 1999 book by Bill Phillips, Body for Life. However, there was no scientific data referenced in the book to support the notion. As this review paper states, the "thermic effect" of eating food (increased metabolism in response to eating) is only 10% of the actual calories consumed.
Energy Metabolism and Obesity
It seems sort of silly to think that burning an extra 30 calories somehow justifies eating an extra 300!
Even now, nutritionists who continue to recommend this eating style, do so not because it increases metabolic rate, but because of the ill-gotten notion that frequent eating of small meals should lead to overall less calories consumed. However, studies have shown that it actually does the opposite. In general, the best was found to be 2-4 REAL MEALS per day. More than 4, you'll overeat calories, less than 2 and your likely to be so hungry when you eat that you'll make poor food choices.
Myth iii: Breakfast is the most important meal of the day
All meals are equally important. The key is to eat well and with thought, when you are hungry. I have lots of patients who tell me they have to force themselves to eat breakfast because the nutritionist says its the most important meal of the day. If you aren't hungry, you shouldn't be forcing yourself to eat.
As long as you are eating 2-4 reasonable meals per day, you will be fine if one of them is not breakfast. I routinely skip breakfast, eat lunch at 10:00 (I'm up at 5:30 so this really is lunch for me) then am not hungry until 6:00 pm. There is nothing wrong with eating when you are hungry and not by the clock.
Energy Metabolism and Obesity
It seems sort of silly to think that burning an extra 30 calories somehow justifies eating an extra 300!
Even now, nutritionists who continue to recommend this eating style, do so not because it increases metabolic rate, but because of the ill-gotten notion that frequent eating of small meals should lead to overall less calories consumed. However, studies have shown that it actually does the opposite. In general, the best was found to be 2-4 REAL MEALS per day. More than 4, you'll overeat calories, less than 2 and your likely to be so hungry when you eat that you'll make poor food choices.
Myth iii: Breakfast is the most important meal of the day
All meals are equally important. The key is to eat well and with thought, when you are hungry. I have lots of patients who tell me they have to force themselves to eat breakfast because the nutritionist says its the most important meal of the day. If you aren't hungry, you shouldn't be forcing yourself to eat.
As long as you are eating 2-4 reasonable meals per day, you will be fine if one of them is not breakfast. I routinely skip breakfast, eat lunch at 10:00 (I'm up at 5:30 so this really is lunch for me) then am not hungry until 6:00 pm. There is nothing wrong with eating when you are hungry and not by the clock.
These are all variations on the same toxic theme that seems to present itself repeatedly, wolf in sheep's clothing as it is. It instructs us to eat more - more often, more meals, more calories - regardless of how we feel or what we know about how much we've consumed so far. It sings the sweet, false promise that somehow, ingesting more calories will result in weight loss. It seeks to disavow us of the laws of physics as we know them. The conservation of mass, E=mc2 doesn't really exist in the land of these myths. But Einstein was right, if you don't put it in your mouth, it can't end up on your rear!
See you Friday for Baby Step #2
See you Friday for Baby Step #2
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