• Question: is it because of constantly sitting around that people become overweight?

    Asked by anon-181236 on 5 Jun 2018.
    • Photo: Damian Mole

      Damian Mole answered on 5 Jun 2018:

      Hi. That can be one reason. In very basic terms, there is a simple equation for weight gain. If your body ingests and absorbs more calories than it spends through exercise, illness, and simply staying alive, you gain weight because your body stores the extra calories for a rainy day in the form of fat. Conversely, if you expend more energy than you take in, you lose weight. Simple.

      There are some illnesses where weight loss is accelerated, for example cancer. That is down to increased metabolism in ways that we don’t quite understand yet. And decreased intake from being ill, of course.

    • Photo: Laura Hemming

      Laura Hemming answered on 10 Jun 2018:

      There are also a range of psychological mechanisms that might make a person more prone to gaining weight – such as having low self-esteem or depression. However, these are all things that can be changed with treatment, and there is a two way relationship. E.g. the more people exercise and eat better the better their mood, and therefore the more likely they are to continue to exercise and eat healthy.

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