The Set Point and your weight

The fascinating discovery that our hormones are very much part of the weight-gain and weight-loss process was made in the 1950s, when two animal breeders noticed a genetic mutation, now known as the defective 'ob' gene, in their mouse colony that led the affected mice to become naturally very obese. Only in 1994 was it discovered, by researcher Jeff Friedman and colleagues at Rockefeller University in New York, that the genetic mutation caused a lack of a hormone in white adipose (fat) tissue called leptin, which if missing, leads inevitably to chronic obesity.Now it has been recognised that the findings from 1994 where an oversimplification. Leptin is also produced by the stomach and placenta and receptors for this hormone are found in many tissues. However, in terms of weight regulation the size and quantity of the fat cells are utterly important: more and larger fat cells produce more leptin. Leptin then signals through receptors in the hypothalamus, which is the control centre for our hormones in the brain, to restrict energy intake, i.e. appetite. Therefore, if this mechanism does not work due to a genetic defect or most commonly due to leptin resistance, caused commonly by years of yo-yo dieting or eating the wrong composition of foods, this causes the hypothalamus to change the body's natural Set Point, which may result in obesity or difficulty in loosing weight. Most of us are born with an optimum Set Point, which naturally maintains our genetic ideal weight. This is easily brought out of balance through inadequate and crash dieting and if the human body does not receive the correct type, composition and amount of nutrients within one day. Hence, the Set Point must be reset to its original setting, through a carefully customised and monitored approach. A qualified clinical nutritionist may help you in resetting your Set Point by prescribing you a diet based on your anthropometric measurements, your basal metabolic rate and your current health status. The diet needs to be customised for you in order to give you the correct balance of macro- and micronutrients. This is of vital importance for reaching a healthy target weight and most importantly to maintain your weight for life.

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