AI Article Synopsis
- Diet, exercise, and medications have had little impact on rising obesity rates in children, and claims about individualized drugs for weight loss might be overstated.
- The underlying cause of obesity is often misinterpreted; external factors largely influence eating habits and body weight.
- With cheap and energy-dense foods readily available, effective weight management requires consistent external feedback on eating behaviors, like real-time guidance displayed on a computer screen.
Article Abstract
Diet, exercise, and pharmacological interventions have limited effects in counteracting the worldwide increase in pediatric body weight. Moreover, the promise that individualized drug design will work to induce weight loss appears to be exaggerated. We suggest that the reason for this limited success is that the cause of obesity has been misunderstood. Body weight is mainly under external control; our brain permits us to eat under most circumstances, and unless the financial or physical cost of food is high, eating and body weight increase by default. When energy-rich, inexpensive foods are continually available, people need external support to maintain a healthy body weight. Weight loss can thereby be achieved by continuous feedback on how much and how fast to eat on a computer screen.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4609845 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fped.2015.00089 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!