Essay On Set Point Theory

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Set Point Theory, put simply, is the theory that your body changes the way in which it functions in order to maintain an amount of fat that it has established as normal. This is the basis of why genetics could be the cause of obesity in family lines and why there is so much controversy surrounding weight loss (Thompson). How the weight is maintained at a constant point is not fully known. Additional scientific testing may show that just maintaining a diet is not a good way to change your set weight or even to lose weight. This may leave exercise as the optimal option. There are multiple supported theories in relation to how our bodies are able to regulate our body weight. One of the most discussed theories is that a specific portion of the brain is able to regulate weight (Thygerson 130), but this has been proven to be less of an affecting factor:
Regulation of body weight was once considered a simple feedback control system in which the hypothalamus (a section of the brain that controls automatic bodily functions such as body temperature, thirst, and hunger) modulates food intake to compensate for fluctuations in body weight. It is now apparent that maintenance of body weight is achieved through complex
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“The set-point theory was originally developed in 1982 by Bennett and Gurin to explain why repeated dieting is unsuccessful in producing long-term change in body weight or shape” (Riess). This is because your brain does not recognize the difference between a diet and starvation, so it treats them the same way. Weight loss begins to slow down as the diet progresses and eventually will bottom out, making it frustrating to most. Soon after beginning a diet, binge eating is very common. This, paired with the body still trying to conserve calories, makes weight gain that much easier if a diet is broken

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