Your Individual Biology May Influence How Easy it is to Lose Weight

Is it easier for you to lose weight than others? Maybe it's harder for you to lose weight. It could all be down to your physiology. Scientists have discovered evidence for the commonly held belief that people with certain physiologies lose less weight than others when limiting calories.

In this latest study, the researchers studied 12 men and women with obesity. Using a whole-room indirect calorimeter, which allows energy expenditure to be calculated based on air samples, the researchers took baseline measurements of the participants' energy expenditure in response to a day of fasting, followed by a six-week inpatient phase of 50 percent calorie reduction.

The scientists accounted for age, sex, race and baseline weight when calculating the loss of calories. Surprisingly, though, they found that those who lost the least weight were those whose metabolism decreased the most during fasting.

"When people who are obese decrease the amount of food they eat, metabolic responses vary greatly, with a 'thrifty' metabolism possibly contributing to less weight lost," said Susanne Votruba, study author, in a news release. "While behavioral factors such as adherence to diet affect weight loss to an extent, our study suggests we should consider a larger picture that includes individual physiology-and that weight loss is one situation where being thrifty doesn't pay."

Researchers aren't sure whether these biological differences are innate or develop over time. What they do know, though, is that this "thrifty" metabolism may actually fight against weight loss.

"The results corroborate the idea that some people who are obese may have to work harder to lose weight due to metabolic differences," said Martin Reinhardt, lead author of the new study. "But biology is not destiny. Balanced diet and regular physical activity over a longer period can be very effective for weight loss."

The findings are published in the journal Diabetes.

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