Case Study: The Leptin Connection

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The Leptin and Insulin Connection

For the past several decades, the cornerstone of obesity treatment has been dominated by the concept of energy balance. This approach is based on the fundamental principles of the First Law of Thermodynamics. This law states that energy cannot be destroyed and can only be gained, lost, or stored by an organism. Its application to the treatment of overweight and obesity has emphasized a perverted appetite (gluttony) or insufficient physical activity (slothfulness) as the primary causes of excess weight gain. It has, therefore, been assumed that eating too much and moving too little are the main reasons people are overweight or obese, but we will show you why this statement is misleading1.

To show you how this statement is misleading, let us give you the following scenarios. Let’s say that two people own a popular restaurant. Restaurant A is usually slow on Wednesday nights. On one particular Wednesday night, however, the employees …show more content…

It is commonly assumed that lean people practice energy balance and overweight and obese people do not. The truth of the matter is that, although the lean maintain a relatively constant body weight throughout their lifetime and the overweight and obese slowly gain weight throughout their lifetime, most people have no idea how many calories they are eating or burning on any given day. Ask yourself this simple question: how do wild animals maintain their weight? There is a physiological mechanism in which the body always strives to maintain energy balance. To understand this mechanism, the actions of several hormones must be understood. Let us first explain how energy balance is maintained in a healthy, lean

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