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Genes - You Can Beat Yours
Posted on Feb 2nd 2009 7:30AM by Jonny Bowden
Jonny Bowden, author, nutritionist and weight loss coach cuts through all the misconceptions about diet and fitness to help you transform your body, your health and your life.
Think you've got bad genes when it comes to losing weight? Well, maybe you do, maybe you don't. The truth is, it may not matter as much as you think.
Take the Amish of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania -- also known as the "Plain People." They're members of a Christian denomination known for their spurning of "modern conveniences" and their taste for plain living, plain dress and hard physical work. A recent study of the Amish found that, indeed, some subjects did carry a particular variant of a gene -- called the FTO gene -- that is associated with obesity.
Take the Amish of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania -- also known as the "Plain People." They're members of a Christian denomination known for their spurning of "modern conveniences" and their taste for plain living, plain dress and hard physical work. A recent study of the Amish found that, indeed, some subjects did carry a particular variant of a gene -- called the FTO gene -- that is associated with obesity.
The Amish folks with the "fattening" variation of the FTO gene were on average about seven pounds heavier than those without the gene. (We can easily assume that among people who don't do as much physical labor as the Amish do, that gene would "produce" a much more substantial weight difference than just seven pounds!) But even within the group of Amish who had the "fattening" gene, some people were able to avoid getting fat. It simply took a bit more exercise for them to get the same results as those without the gene.
The moral of the story is this: Got bad genes? So what! Genes aren't destiny. You might have to work a little harder if you've got a "genetic disposition" to gain weight, but you can still beat it with lifestyle choices. And that's an optimistic message indeed!
