In a recent study published in the journal Obesity by Kevin Hall from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), researchers aimed at understanding why weight loss tends to halt for most individuals despite efforts put forth using various methods such as surgery, medication or calorie restriction alone. The research revealed that part of the reason is because appetite kicks into overdrive once an individual loses significant weight resulting from decreased intake leading eventually towards undermining any effort in sustaining a healthy lifestyle.
The study also highlighted how different approaches to losing weight affect hunger cues at varied phases of such transitions and elucidated how surgery or medication could potentially double the time taken for hitting an impasse compared with cutting calories alone, allowing individuals to continue shedding pounds longer than usual before their appetite catches up.
The study’s findings suggest that while drugs like Wegovy (semaglutide) and Zepbound (tirzepatide), which mimic gut hormones for weight loss purposes, have a considerable effect on reducing the number of calories one consumes each day alongside curtailing hunger signals as they lose pounds, these approaches do not entirely eliminate appetite. Instead, individuals still experience an increase in appetite once significant amounts of weight are lost with both medications lowering this surge by about half compared to calorie restriction alone.
Can you summarize the findings from Kevin Hall’s study on weight loss plateaus and how different methods affect hunger cues? Also, can you provide some practical tips for overcoming a weight loss impasse based on these insights?
Leave a Reply