Are YOU exercising but still gaining weight? HAMSTERS may explain why

Are YOU exercising but still gaining weight? Scientists claim HAMSTERS may explain why being active causes people to eat more

• Brain cells change in the region that controls appetite when hamsters exercise
• Encourages them to eat more to make up for the calories burned in exercise
• This is driven by hormones; blocking the hormones reverses weight gain
• May allow scientists to identify targets for anti-obesity medication  

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It’s a bizarre paradox which has baffled scientists for years – why do many dieters gain weight after exercising?

But now scientists believe hamsters could hold the answer to the question that has long stumped researchers.

Brain cells change shape and size in the region that controls appetite when the rodents exercise.

This is thought to encourage the animals to eat more to make up for the calories they have burned.

And if their stronger appetite causes them to overindulge, it results in weight gain.  

Hamsters may help scientists understand why exercise causes many dieters to gain weight

Hamsters change their behaviour according to the season, Dr Gisela Helfer, from Bradford University, and Dr Rebecca Dumbell, from the MRC Hartwell Institute, wrote in a piece for The Conversation.

Siberian hamsters, which do not hibernate, even lose half their body weight in time for winter so they do not require as much food to survive. 

Brain scans show the cells in the region of the brain known as the hypothalamus change size and shape in hamsters depending on the time of year.

The hypothalamus regulates appetite in both humans and many animals. 

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In winter, when the days are short, these cells shrink. This changes the hormones that are released into the brain, which alters the rodents’ appetite and ultimately leads to weight gain.

The release of these hormones is thought to be influenced by exercise.

Research also suggests pet hamsters that have access to a running wheel gain weight and eat more.

And the weight they gain is made up of both extra muscle and fat. This weight gain is also driven by hormones.

Scientists know this because when these hormones are blocked, the hamsters’ weight gain is reversed.

Dr Hefler and Dr Dumbell add that studying hamsters could provide insights into the cells and systems that help to regulate weight in humans.

This may allow them to identify targets for anti-obesity drugs, as well as how to avoid dangerous weight gain in the first place, they add. 

They wrote: ‘The problem with eating less and moving more is people feel hungry after exercise and they have to fight the biologically programmed urge to eat. 

‘To develop effective ways to lose weight, we need a better understanding of how these biological urges work. We believe hamsters hold some clues.’

Around 26 per cent of adults in the UK are obese, according to statistics. Obesity even affects one in 10 children in reception and one in five in year six.

Carrying dangerous amounts of weight is responsible for approximately 617,000 NHS hospital admissions every year.

In the US, obesity affects more than 35 per cent of adults and 17 per cent of children. 

The condition raises the risk of conditions such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease and even certain cancers.

This comes after the organisers of an anti-obesity campaign claimed earlier this month GPs should go on cookery courses so they can prescribe healthy recipes to overweight patients.

Dr Abhinav Bhansali, from Culinary Medicine UK, said doctors are ill-equipped to deal with one of the country’s biggest health challenges.

WHAT IS OBESITY? AND WHAT ARE ITS HEALTH RISKS?

Obesity is defined as an adult having a BMI of 30 or over.

A healthy person’s BMI – calculated by dividing weight in kg by height in metres, and the answer by the height again – is between 18.5 and 24.9. 

Among children, obesity is defined as being in the 95th percentile.

Percentiles compare youngsters to others their same age. 

For example, if a three-month-old is in the 40th percentile for weight, that means that 40 per cent of three-month-olds weigh the same or less than that baby.

Around 58 per cent of women and 68 per cent of men in the UK are overweight or obese. 

The condition costs the NHS around £6.1 billion, out of its approximate £124.7 billion budget, every year.

This is due to obesity increasing a person’s risk of a number of life-threatening conditions.

Such conditions include type 2 diabetes, which can cause kidney disease, blindness and even limb amputations.

Research suggests that at least one in six hospital beds in the UK are taken up by a diabetes patient.

Obesity also raises the risk of heart disease, which kills 315,000 people every year in the UK – making it the number one cause of death.

Carrying dangerous amounts of weight has also been linked to 12 different cancers. 

This includes breast, which affects one in eight women at some point in their lives.

Among children, research suggests that 70 per cent of obese youngsters have high blood pressure or raised cholesterol, which puts them at risk of heart disease.

Obese children are also significantly more likely to become obese adults. 

And if children are overweight, their obesity in adulthood is often more severe.  

As many as one in five children start school in the UK being overweight or obese, which rises to one in three by the time they turn 10.  

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