Why do some people eat so much, but never add weight?
We all have that friend or relative who eats a lot but regardless of how much they eat, they remain slim even without carrying out any type of exercise at all, while some, on the other hand, may not even like eating, but they will still be really fat. Sometimes we wonder why it is like that. I had a friend in school who desperately wanted to get fat, by all means, she was a natural foodie and she took lots of beverages as advised by some colleagues, but she still did not add weight at all. There are so many myths about weight gain and weight loss, but today's topic is to explore the possible scientific reason why some people eat so much and fail to still gain weight.
Genetics plays a serious role in our body type, while some body types may come off naturally lean, some other body types come off plumb. Asides from genetics, there is some type of medications taken for some medical conditions that would lead to weight loss or inability to gain weight. Let's check out some of the medical conditions that can lead to weight gain/loss issues.
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Hyperthyroidism: This is a condition of an overactive thyroid, this condition creates excessive thyroid hormone in the body. Thyroid hormones in the body are responsible for the basic parts of different types of elements of human metabolism, this also includes the regulation of metabolic rate.
Having this condition creates an overactive metabolism, there is a lot more calorie burn throughout the day as well, with proper medication, the condition can be managed but can come with issues creating weight gain even with increased food intake.
Inflammatory bowel disease: IBD is a general term used to describe a list of other conditions that are characterized by intestine inflammation, the conditions described will lead to a negative impact on weight maintenance. The condition would lead to a reduction in the amount of food consumed, which will lead to regular diarrhea which could result in a significant weight loss.
Medications: Some medications and treatments could create a loss of appetite, nausea, diarrhea, and vomiting which can lead to difficulty in having a healthy weight.
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Type 1 diabetes: Diabetes especially type 1 diabetes, is an autoimmune condition that destroys the pancreas in the cell, these pancreases are responsible for insulin production. If type 1 diabetes is not appropriately managed, it will result in a high level of blood glucose which gets excreted through the urine, excessive excretion of glucose would create an unplanned weight loss.
Eating disorders: There are different types of eating disorders, these disorders will limit the amount of food intake which will in turn affect weight level.1
Asides from these serious medical issues, there are other less serious reasons behind eating a lot and still looking slim.
Thin muscle tissue: They naturally have lean muscle or they build it up. Muscle has the ability to burn more calories than when the body is at rest and in motion. Building more lean muscle tissue will actually result in difficulty in adding weight.
NEAT: This acronym means ''Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis''. There are people who do not necessarily hit the gym but they cannot sit down for a long time, they are always walking around, doing the dishes, washing clothes just doing some extra activities in the house, these extra activities that may appear little and insignificant could actually help burn a few extra calories within the space of 24 hours.
Certain activities enclosed in NEAT are;
Cleaning your house by yourself instead of getting a housekeeper.
Move around within the space of every ten minutes.
Clean your compound.
While watching TV shows, take time to walk around when there is a commercial break.
While working, take breaks to walk around, and speak to clients over the phone.
Take an evening walk, set to 10,000 steps in a day if possible.
Consume lesser calories: Most of the things we drink contain calories, examples are diet sodas, coffee drinks, and even the sugared drinks some of us consume on a daily basis.
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Low thermal effect: Eating excessively increases the thermal effect of food, this makes the energy required to digest the food consumed and move it into fat actually stored for future use. In the case of excessive eating, the thermal effect from the food creates weight gain, the set of people who remain slim even after consuming so much food actually have a low thermal effect.
They understand their body: Some of the people who eat so much food but tend to remain slim, actually know how some of these meals affect their body, they know the appropriate meal that makes them and the ones that do not, so they watch what they eat.
They have a great sleep habit: Sleeping more creates a better type of body metabolism which helps to keep weight off. A proper night's rest is extremely important for helping the body function appropriately.
DNA/Gene: Gene is really one of the main reasons behind this happening, most of these happenings are associated with inheritance and family history. The possibility of becoming an obese person, when you come from a family of highly obese people, is really high.
If your case is not associated with any medical issue and you still want to gain weight, there are simple (maybe not too simple) things that can be done in order to help your weight gain journey.
How to gain weight naturally.
Some people go to the extent of taking medications, injections, and even surgery to add weight, but certainly, this is a very personal decision, you just need to be sure that whatever you are taking is really safe for use and it will not have any adverse side effect on your health.
Build muscle: Cardio and other exercises related to weight training are very important for health training. Weight training helps increase overall weight without necessarily increasing body fat.
You will need to consume more calorie foods: Food that has healthy fats and whole grains contains more calories. Incorporating fats, oils, nuts, and at least a cup of grain into your meals will help a lot.
Eat regularly: Eating constantly and regularly will help you consume a greater amount of calories, especially if you do not eat much at a time. Actually, the act of dividing a big meal into smaller, frequent parts will make it rather convenient for more calories to be consumed without eating so much at a time.
Shakes and supplements: Protein supplements and shakes will add to the calories in the body. Some protein supplements are specifically for body mass building purposes and most of the meal replacement shakes contain a higher amount of calories which is meant to maintain weight for those who are unable to consume regular meals.
Taking a lot of water before a meal can help you avoid excessive eating, but if you are trying to gain weight, you should reduce the amount of water consumed before eating. 2
Conclusion.
Just before you envy those who seem to eat a lot and do not add weight, be sure they do not have these medical conditions. You can also lose weight if you think you do not like your looks.
Hi, I am Tobi a writer, speaker, relationship blogger, and lover of good music. I love making friends and learning from people. Want to hear me speak on relationships and general life issues, you can find my podcast channel Here and I also have a youtube channel where you can listen and watch any episode for free, do not forget to subscribe and share with friends. I sincerely appreciate every love I get from members of the community and do well to keep them coming.
For further studies.
https://www.healthline.com/health/why-cant-i-gain-weight
https://www.healthline.com/health/why-cant-i-gain-weight#takeaway
https://healthyeating.sfgate.com/can-someone-eat-much-still-skinny-12007.html
Once tried adding weight by consuming a supplement known as 'wate-on'. It was quite an expensive supplement but I stuck at it for about 3 months. Nothing changed.
In my opinion, it is largely genetic. The same thing is applicable to muscle building. You could spend over a year working out without much result while someone else will do ordinary push-ups for a couple of days and will have all the muscles.
This is really serious, people really take a lot of things to add weight oo even unhealthy substances, I agree too, it's basically a genetic factor. Thanks for reading.
I would say, I go with the genetics point of view a little when it comes to putting on weight, but it is no doubt true that when fat is stored in the tissues, people could start to suffer obesity. A lot of the things we consume when taken in excess could cause a person to increase overtime, especially carbohydrate.
Genetics greatly contribute to weight factor, even while trying to look our choice, we have to be careful with the things we take in, thanks for your time.
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I think, it'll be OK if we remain as God created us, that to allowing our DNA have its way. We may have problems if we want to modify our genetic make-up.
Thanks for such elaborate write up.
I could remember a time in school when a friend of mine complains that she eats alot and don't gain weight, but me that barely eats, has a lot of flesh in the right places than she does. This was the same response I do give her. Telling her that, she can't add weight like me because we come from different genes. Thanks for shedding more light to my knowledge 🤗🤗
Thanks for reading @sayofunmi
You are welcome
Hahaha , talk to me directly.. although I don't eat too much sha but I literally need to add weight by all means
I easily gain and easily lose, I guess it's a win win for me
I'm the eat-so-much-and-gain-no-weight friend haha. But I don't quite fit into any of the categories. While I understand my body type, I don't watch what I eat. I just eat. And I'm adventurous with it too. Oh well, I've probably got a low thermal effect. What I'm certain of though is that when I'm stressed, I loose a lot of weight even though I stress eat and when I do eat while being chilled for a period, I put on some weight but at a slow, low rate.