Hi Guys,
One of my
favorite subjects is Thermodynamics and as I was reading a book on
Thermodynamics, I found this interesting concept.
Dieting is
generally based on calorie counting.
It is based on the concept of conservation of energy which is also the first
law of Thermodynamics. People who consume more energy than their body burns get
weight, whereas people who eat less will lose weight. But, we see people who
eat more and yet remain slim. We also see people who eat less and are stout.
So, where is the problem? Researchers come out with lot of theories.
Certain people
have food efficient bodies and so
they need fewer calories to do a work than others require. Our body interprets dieting
as starvation and starts to use the reserve energy more stringently. For
instance instead of eating 2500 calorie daily without exercise, the basal
metabolic rate (energy spent during our rest time) reduces by 10-20 percent. If
dieting continues for long periods, our body adapts to lower metabolic rate and
if we start to eat normally again, we gain more weight than before.
So, moderate
exercise is a part of healthy dieting program. It builds muscle tissue
that burns calories faster than the fat tissues.
Another general
hypothesis is that genes are the reason for overweight. Stats say that 80% of
children of overweight parents are also overweight. So heredity is a reason for
overweight. Researchers have found a gene called RIIbeta which controls the rate of metabolism. The genes keep the
fat level at a set point (which
differs from person to person). So if a person is going to gain weight, the metabolism
becomes faster and if he is to lose weight, metabolism becomes slow. In this
case, exercises don’t help very much.
If metabolic
rate is low, the people must reduce in taking foods with high calorific value
as it is the only option to avoid putting on weight. Exercises don’t help as
metabolic rate is low.
There is
something known as Sensible diet, which consists of two rules.
- Eat whatever you want and whenever you want as much as you want provided that you do not eat unless you are hungry.
- You stop eating before you get stuffed.
Overweight leads
to lot of health related problems ranging from high blood pressure to some
forms of cancer especially if people have diabetes, hypertension and heart
disease.
Listen to your
body and don’t impose it.
Happy Reading!!!
P.S: This is an
excerpt from ‘Thermodynamics: An
Engineering Approach – Cengel, Boles’
