HHS HealthBeat (December 12, 2008)

Defending weight

From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.

Does it seem like after you lose weight, your body fights its way back to fat?

Researcher Barbara Nicklas of Wake Forest University says it’s the body defending its weight – what your metabolism thinks is where your weight should be.

Nicklas examined that in middle-aged and older women in a weight-loss program. The women wore devices that recorded how physically active they were.

Nicklas says women who became less active tended to regain more weight.

``If women know that this is going to happen to them, they might then try to not let it happen, by trying to keep their energy expenditure up.’’ (7 seconds)

She thinks the drop in physical activity was part of the body’s way to preserve those calories and defend its weight.

The study in Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise was supported by the National Institutes of Health.

Learn more at hhs.gov.

Last revised: December, 12 2008