---

If you think a sedentary lifestyle will make you fat, you may be wrong. A new research study among a wide range of populations, says that while regular exercise may have several health benefits, it may not help you to reduce weight. The study reveals that cutting calories, particularly from ultra-processed foods, will promote weight loss more effectively, indicating that surplus energy intake rather than lack of activity is the primary cause for weight gain.

The study published in the major scientific journal PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America) suggests that the high rates of obesity associated with economic development are most likely caused by a high calorie diet containing a large proportion of ultra-processed foods.

The researchers selected 4213 adults from 34 populations across six continents for their study. They had a wide range of lifestyles and included hunter-gatherers, farmers (both arable and pastoral), and people from industrialised populations.

For the study, the researchers used two different measures of obesity — BMI (Body Mass Index) and body fat percentage, which refers to the proportion of fat to total body weight.

Absolute body mass, body fat percentage, and BMI were observed as greater, and obesity found to be more common, in more economically developed populations., whose total energy expenditure was also greater.

Having compared the patterns of energy expenditure in the widely varying populations, the researchers concluded that increased energy intake is the primary factor that links overweight and obesity to economic development. The study found the percentage of ultra-processed foods, which are energy dense and designed to encourage overconsumption, in the diet positively correlated with body fat percentage.

They suggest that differences in the quality and quantity of food may be key. Industrially produced foods common in developed countries may be more easily digested, reducing faecal energy loss and increasing the proportion of consumed calories that are absorbed.

---

Related Articles

Kerala Tourism holds road shows in Europe

Kerala receives award for ‘Best Honeymoon Destination’

Treating alcoholism

Sobha Hermitage Home Away from Home

Vaajeekarana for procreation

Alcohol The good and the bad