Weight reduction
Weight loss - even weight loss ( ugs. Losing weight ) or weight loss called - is the reduction of body weight (body mass) in humans (or animals).
Basically, there is a reduction in weight when the body is supplied with less energy in the form of food and drink during metabolism than is consumed by basal metabolic rate and physical activity , which results in a negative energy balance .
Types of Weight Loss
The (human) body can lose weight through loss of water (see water balance ), breakdown of reserve substances such as glycogen or body fat , muscle mass , minerals (see mineral balance ), bone loss and loss of body parts and hair.
By breathing is only minimal weight loss (exhaled CO 2 - molecules are slightly heavier than O 2 molecules).
Loss of water
The water content of the human body can be between 45 and 70%, depending on your personal constitution. More obese people carry proportionally less water with them because fat tissue contains less water than muscle tissue, for example.
Apart from dehydration ( desiccosis due to reduced fluid intake or insufficient fluid intake, see dehydration ), the short- term decrease in body water can lead to a supposedly rapid weight loss.
Phosphates are used in food processing to provide preparations (for example ham, sausage, processed cheese, ...) with more water (for better processability, "juicier" appearance or food fraud so that water is sold at sausage price). From this, unproven hypotheses were derived that phosphates supplied with food would also bind water in the body.
Breakdown of glycogen
A person weighing 80 kg contains around two to two and a half kilograms of hydrous glycogen. This glycogen store in muscles and liver is available to endurance athletes or is primarily reduced during a diet. As a polysaccharide , like starch , glycogen is highly hygroscopic and is therefore stored in the cells with the help of water. The often rapid weight loss in the first few days of low-carb diets can be explained by the loss of this water. Consistent with this, the continuation of the usual eating habits also leads to the replenishment of glycogen stores in the body and to an extremely rapid increase in weight of up to 2-3 kg due to the storage of water.
Targeted weight reduction to reduce excess weight
Targeted weight reduction can be achieved through a combination of the following measures:
- reduced calorie intake
- Change of diet and lifestyle ( dietetics ) by choosing certain foods in the form of a diet
- Avoidance of certain biologically or chemically unfavorable ingredients
- Muscle building to increase the basal metabolic rate (for example through bodybuilding)
- increased physical activity through sport and fitness training
- increased cognitive activity
- Behavioral therapy to learn new eating habits and behavioral routines
Targeted weight reduction is especially necessary in the case of obesity , which often occurs in industrialized countries, where only a few people do hard physical work and where food is in abundance. If you are very overweight ( obese ), measures of bariatric surgery can also be used.
The aim is to achieve the “ideal weight” or at least to reduce excess weight. The following positive effects are expected:
- fewer diseases (“better health ”) and at the same time higher life expectancy
- to be efficient and to withstand stress (increased fitness )
- more zest for life
- slimmer appearance
Weight loss as a result of diseases and disorders
Physical , mental, and behavioral ( eating disorder ) disorders can result in weight loss. Misguided self-awareness can lead to underweight .
Unwanted weight loss during periods of hunger and distress
Unwanted weight loss is usually the result of hunger or illness and leads to underweight in the long term . Today, this occurs mainly in so-called developing countries , where food is often insufficient. Even in times of need in Central Europe, emaciation played a role. In magazines throughout the first half of the 20th century, classified ads like this one from 1931 can be found:
“ Against leanness one always only uses Steiner's Oriental. Strength pills . They cause significant weight gain, blooming appearance and the like in a short time. beautiful, full body shape (magnificent bust for women); strengthen the desire to work, blood and nerves. "
In the second half of the 20th century, weight gain advertisements disappeared from German magazines. However, even during the World Wars, obesity was the more prominent issue in advertisements. In the paper quoted above, there are advertisements with the advertising messages “How strong women get slimmer”, “Obesity? Degreasing tea! "And" Is slimness just fashion? "
literature
- Stephan Herpertz, Martina de Zwaan, Stephan Zipfel (eds.): Handbook of eating disorders and obesity . 2nd edition, Springer Verlag, Berlin 2015, ISBN 978-3-642-54572-6 .
See also
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Werner Baltes: Food chemistry. Springer-Verlag, 2011, ISBN 978-3-642-16539-9 , p. 234 ( limited preview in Google book search).
- ↑ Walter zägelein: Move for Life. Springer-Verlag, 2013, ISBN 978-3-642-37643-6 , p. 57 ( limited preview in the Google book search).
- ^ Beat Knechtle: Current sports physiology. Karger Medical and Scientific Publishers, 2002, ISBN 978-3-805-57457-0 , p. 134 ( limited preview in Google book search).