Regaining Weight Lost On A Diet Seems To Be Hormonal Problem

Obese people who restrict their diet and lose weight are likely to regain that weight because of hormonal changes, not because of a return to a poor diet. Fifty overweight or obese adults with a BMI of between 27 and 40 participated in a 10-week low-calorie weight loss program. Researchers measured appetite-regulating hormones at the beginning of the study, at the end, and a year later. Participants lost an average of 13 kgs, but the hormone levels changed in a way associated with an increase in hunger. After a year, participants had regained an average of five kgs. “The relapse has a strong physiological basis and is not simply the result of the voluntary resumption of old habits," researchers concluded.