Do obese individuals gain weight more easily than nonobese individuals?
A review of studies done on human subjects who were overfed under controlled conditions for periods ranging from 2 to 12 wk shows that the energy cost of induced weight gain is a function of initial body weight and of lean body mass, body fat, and percent body fat. Therefore, bigger and fatter people need to eat more to gain a given amount of weight than do those who are thin. A likely explanation is that obese individuals tend to put on a large proportion of fat, a high-energy tissue, whereas thin people tend to gain more lean, which is a low-energy tissue.
Forbes
G B
GB
Department of Pediatrics, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, NY 14642.
D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000378:metabolism; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000856:Anorexia Nervosa / Q000378:metabolism; D001823:Body Composition; D003720:Densitometry; D004040:Dietary Carbohydrates / Q000008:administration & dosage; D004041:Dietary Fats / Q000008:administration & dosage; D002149:Energy Intake; D004734:Energy Metabolism; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000503:physiopathology*; D011865:Radioisotope Dilution Technique; D012044:Regression Analysis; D015430:Weight Gain / Q000502:physiology*
D004040:Dietary Carbohydrates; D004041:Dietary Fats