Vitality & Health

THE IMPACT OF OVEREATING

WHAT’S THE IMPACT OF OVEREATING

Our food is safe and in the West we don’t know food shortage. We have the opposite problem: we have no shortage, we eat too much.

Homo sapiens exists for 40000 years and has always known food shortage, apart from the last 50 years. The body saved up on fat in prosperous times to get through these tough ones. These stocked calories were used in times of shortage. So it’s a natural survival technique that’s been anchored in our genes for over 10000 years.

Even when there’s no more shortage today, still did our sparing genes keep stocking fat in case the tough times should return. That’s my children who were born too skinny are more prone to get fat or diabetes later in life. The opposite happens as well: babies that were born too fat also have programming errors in their DNA. Those who get exposed to too much sugar and fat in the uterus, will deal with an unregulated metabolism. The feeling of hunger and insulin production get confused and they carry that with them for the rest of their lives: fat babies make fat adults.

The first 1000 days – pregnancy and the first two years – are the most important, because the DNA is still plastic. It’s most advised to get pregnant on a healthy weight. Don’t diet during pregnancy, but don’t overeat either.

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