All people have a “set point” weight, and just as we do not have control over our eye color, hair color, or height, we have no control over our set point. Anyone attempting to lose weight and those suffering from eating disorders need to know about the metabolic system. The metabolic setpoint or thermostat is the weight range in which your body is accustomed and programmed to function at its best. The body will fight to maintain this predetermined weight when restricting food intake.
Only a small percentage (5% to 10%) of population can lose significant weight and stretch it long-term with calorie restriction (1200 cal/day). These individuals are normally young and more likely male.
The Set-Point Theory is a scientific explanation of how our physiology controls weight and how weight loss surgery works. Bariatric surgery procedures like gastric sleeve and RNY bypass overcome your biological barriers to give you a long-term solution!
What is Set Point Theory?
The setpoint theory was first developed in 1982 by Gurin and Bennett to explain why repeat dieting from patients failed to produce long-lasting effects on their shape and overall weight. Our body has a point of equilibrium comfortable to operate around and adapts to the level at which weight scale and body fat content are maintained.
The set point theory believes that regulatory mechanisms in a person’s body will fight to sustain the genetically preferred weight and is sensitive to any caloric changes when dieting and exercise.
Anyone who has tried dieting will know how hard it is to lose weight continuously. Scientists believe that the average person has a set point range of about ten to twenty pounds, meaning that there is a range at which the body is comfortable and will resist attempts changes to baseline weight range. Some people have a high set value, and some are flat; some have small, medium, and larger frames (big-boned).
Metabolic thermostat
From: Ethicon
Metabolic Thermostat or Body Thermostat refers to how metabolism and appetite adjust to weight changes.
The body recognizes the increased fat level and elevated weight as an ideal and makes it its new setpoint. Even modest diet restriction to lose weight makes us think we are going through starvation.
When you go on a diet,
- The metabolism will slow down to conserve energy. The body will sense a semi-starvation state and attempt to use a few calories it receives effectively.
- The body may require more sleep, the body temperature will drop, and many women will lose their menstrual cycle. This typically occurs when a woman’s weight becomes too low. Her entire reproductive system will shut down because her body cannot handle a pregnancy safely.
- Ultimately when body fat is lost, the appetite of the person losing weight will increase. Many individuals who diet will also experience the urge to binge eat. This is because the body is asking for more food that is being provided to function well.
How is your Set Point determined?
A part of the brain, the hypothalamus, plays a significant role in the body’s energy intake/expenditure and, ultimately, our weight management, like our blood pressure. A signal sent from the intestine to your brain adjusts appetite and metabolism.
The gut-brain connection regulates appetite, hunger, and energy balance – also referred to as the body’s neurohormonal axis.
To maintain the particular weight range our body is used to, the hypothalamus adjusts our metabolism and appetite – increases hunger & cravings and reduces satiety & metabolism (Starvation Mode). If you gain weight, the total metabolic rate increases and the body’s temperature rises to help burn off any unwanted calories.
What causes diets to fail?
Anyone who has tried dieting will know how hard it is to lose weight continuously. This is why! Known as weight loss plateaus, this is typically a sign that the body attempts to fight to retain its weight.
For dieters, it’s essential to accept that the body needs to be at a particular weight to stop the dieting cycle. The more someone tries to go below this set point weight range (it may be -5 lbs, -10 lbs, or maybe even -20 lbs), the harder the body will fight to retain its natural weight.
When we lose weight, the fat cells shrink in size, but they don’t go away. When we gain weight, there is an increase in both fat cell size and number.
A recent study by The New England Journal of Medicine by the 95% of obese people who lose weight with a rigorous weight-loss program will regain the weight (or more) within two to five years.
How do I change my body’s SetPoint?
An energy imbalance causes obesity and excessive fat deposition in individuals. Ultimately, your body weight regulation is influenced by genetic makeup, behavioral patterns, as well as environmental, developmental, physiological, social, and cultural factors.
Bodyweight setting varies for each person and is mainly affected by:
- Genetic Predisposition
- Environmental Factors
- Developmental History
Our physiological characteristics defend any deviations from our operating weight. That is why diet, exercise, and diet pills are not a lasting solution, as they do not change our body’s fat setpoint.
Gastrointestinal surgery can break this vicious cycle and change your set point forever! Bariatric surgery causes changes in the body’s internal processes that control hunger and metabolic rate change. It tells your body you are at a lower set point – decreasing hunger & cravings and increasing satiety & metabolism (Overfed Mode).
Weight Loss Surgery Shifts Body’s Set-Point
Bariatric surgery, known as weight loss surgery, offers the most effective procedures for permanently treating obesity, whereas non-surgical dietary weight loss options are not long-term.
Bariatric surgery calibrates your body’s set point for durable and sustainable weight loss to give you a second chance in life!
Until recently, it was assumed that the restriction produced by weight loss surgery procedures, including gastric bypass, vertical sleeve gastrectomy, and lap-band, is responsible for mechanically restricting the amount of food a patient can eat.
Bariatric surgery kicks your metabolism into overfed mode.
References
- Role of set-point theory in regulation of body weight
- Overweight, Obesity, and Mortality from Cancer in a Prospectively Studied Cohort of U.S. Adults
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