Obesity Is Not Necessarily Our Fault - Blame The Ancestors
Back to the beginning…..
Early humans ate whenever they could and whatever they could, the fatter the woolly mammoth, the better. They stored food as fat for the lean or starvation times, and lived off their fat when there was no food. We are the descendants of those best adapted at storing fats. The others died out.
It was quite simply - survival of the fattest.
But now there’s plenty of food and still our bodies go on storing the fat for lean times that never come. Our ancestors were the most successful at storing fat so genetically we are predisposed to eating too much and hanging onto the weight.
To change this we have to change either our eating patterns or what we eat.
Our appetite, our desire to eat and the signal that we have had enough and should stop eating, is controlled by the hypothalamus, a very primitive part of the brain.
As babies our first experience is to feed. We need to feed to survive. As a baby suckles from its mother, close, warm and secure, the early experience of feeding is associated with closeness, comfort and companionship.
Feeding soothes, pacifies and provides a feeling of love and safety, and it is this primitive connection between food and security that remains with us throughout life.
Back to the Cave……
Women have always liked company and chatting.
Stone age men went off hunting alone or, if with others, they didn’t talk. It might disturb the prey. Most men still don’t talk much, that’s why they never ask for directions.
Women went picking berries, gathering herbs, fungi, leaves, roots, etc. sometimes the odd insect, grub or lizard, They chatted and giggled as they gathered, one eye on the lizards, one eye on the kids, babies on their backs.
They arrived back in the camp to find the men had deposited the carcass of a woolly mammoth for them to skin, clean and cook. The men were exhausted from the hunt, poor things. So the women got to it (as we do), skinning, gutting, slicing, cooking, – chatting, laughing, all the while – serving it all up to everyone. Chatting while we ate – Here, Betty, try this bit, I knew this bit would be nice, - anyone like an eye? Testicles are a bit tough, etc. That’s what we do. We like to talk while we eat. It’s a social occasion. Men mostly like to be quiet, the strong silent type. The Victorian patriarch actually told his family to eat in silence, no talk at the table.
We women like company, we support each other, we talk and we laugh.
Nothing’s changed…… We do our food gathering in the shops and supermarkets these days but we still like company. Today we call friends, come for coffee, come for a meal, let’s go out for a drink, let’s go shopping….. We like company. Men would never call a friend and say, Hey Joe, I need to buy some nails & some gas for the BBQ - want to come shopping?
When women go out for meals, we like to go with friends. Even when we are at the pub and need to visit the rest room, we go in pairs, or more. We support each other. Men would never say, I need to go to the toilet, want to come Joe? We’d be very suspicious of any man who said that.
Getting Back to the Cave…
Our ancestors needed activity to find food. They stored fat well but they had no chance to get fat because food was scarce and finding it involved lots of walking, lifting, carrying and much hard work. They were on the move most of the day, or they went hungry.
The foods also were very different in those days - no processed foods, no takeaway saber tooth tiger burgers, no fatty, salty snake snacks. They gathered wild foods, wholefoods, healthy foods, that our bodies are well adapted to. Our bodies are not adapted to artificial foods, chemicals, preservatives and heaps of salt and fat, especially when we are inactive.
Diets don’t work. A diet is more often the cause of overeating, rather than the cure.
Women need to have 25-30% body fat for health and fertility.The body responds to diet by conserving body fat.
When we restrict foods it’s a signal to the body that there’s a food shortage. The body thinks its survival is threatened and responds by slowing the metabolic rate, which slows down the loss of body fat, making it much harder to lose. It is healthier to stabilise at a heavier rate than to repeatedly lose and gain weight. (95% of dieters regain lost weight, and often more).
Repeated failure of diets leads to blame, increased stress and poor self esteem. Dieting causes negative feelings towards food, guilt about eating and punishment after eating, which leads to depression, anxiety, fatigue and poor sleep patterns.
If you have been on diets previously, your metabolism will have slowed down. Exercise is the cure. We are designed for activity.
Our food is fuel. Different types of petrol suit different types of cars. Use the proper one and it runs smoothly, use the wrong type and there’s trouble – try diesel in a petrol car or petrol with water in it. The car splutters and stops. We are designed for pure whole foods, natural foods, a variety, not too much. The odd woolly mammoth feast is OK.
Source:
“LaughItOff”, a Weight Loss Course, Tasmania