Doctors Busting the Myth-Exercise NOT Key To Tackling Obesity

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For decades we have heard that the key to losing weight was exercise.  Daily running, weight lifting, cycling, swimming, and the beat goes on.  This was it! The gold standard; regular and continuous exercise was the primary activity for staying healthy.

exercise

Well, just like eating eggs will kill you, and mayonnaise will clog your arteries, it turns out that exercise may not be the gold standard to losing weight after all.

From the BBC:

Physical activity has little role in tackling obesity – and instead public health messages should squarely focus on unhealthy eating, doctors say.

In an editorial in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, three international experts said it was time to “bust the myth” about exercise.

They said while activity was a key part of staving off diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and dementia, its impact on obesity was minimal.

Instead excess sugar and carbohydrates were key.

The experts, including London cardiologist Dr Aseem Malhotra, blamed the food industry for encouraging the belief that exercise could counteract the impact of unhealthy eating.

They even likened their tactics as “chillingly similar” to those of Big Tobacco on smoking and said celebratory endorsements of sugary drinks and the association of junk food and sport must end.

They said there was evidence that up to 40% of those within a normal weight range will still harbour harmful metabolic abnormalities typically associated with obesity.

But despite this public health messaging had “unhelpfully” focused on maintaining a healthy weight through calorie counting when it was the source of calories that mattered most – research has shown that diabetes increases 11-fold for every 150 additional sugar calories consumed compared to fat calories.

And they pointed to evidence from the Lancet global burden of disease programme which shows that unhealthy eating was linked to more ill health than physical activity, alcohol and smoking combined.

‘Unscientific’

Dr Malhotra said: “An obese person does not need to do one iota of exercise to lose weight, they just need to eat less. My biggest concern is that the messaging that is coming to the public suggests you can eat what you like as long as you exercise.

“That is unscientific and wrong. You cannot outrun a bad diet.”

But others said it was risky to play down the role of exercise. Prof Mark Baker, of the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence, which recommends “well-balanced diets combined with physical activity”, said it would be “idiotic” to rule out the importance of physical activity.

Ian Wright, director general at Food and Drink Federation, said: “The benefits of physical activity aren’t food industry hype or conspiracy, as suggested. A healthy lifestyle will include both a balanced diet and exercise.”

He said the industry was encouraging a balanced diet by voluntarily providing clear on-pack nutrition information and offering products with extra nutrients and less salt, sugar and fat.

“This article appears to undermine the origins of the evidence-based government public health advice, which must surely be confusing for consumers,” he said.

 

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Professor Mike

Professor Mike is a left-leaning, dog loving, political junkie. He has written dozens of articles for Substack, Medium, Simily, and Tribel. Professor Mike has been published at Smerconish.com, among others. He is a strong proponent of the environment, and a passionate protector of animals. In addition he is a fierce anti-Trumper. Take a moment and share his work.
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8 years ago

[…] Doctors Busting the Myth-Exercise NOT Key To Tackling Obesity […]

8 years ago

I’m glad that some physicians are finally getting on board with dispelling this myth. Can you lose more weight via a combo of diet and exercise – yes. Is it necessary – no. I love going to the gym and working out – but your best body is made in the kitchen. Whether it’s Weight Watchers, Paleo, or whatever you just have to find what works best for you and your body and stick with it. I lost over 100 pounds last year. I took off the 1st 60 before I even thought about exercise.

Michael – great job on your weight loss so far. The rest will come.

Marsha Woerner
8 years ago

I used to work for Weight Watchers, a LONG time ago, before I was in a wheelchair all the time (12 years ago, before I was pregnant with my first son (19 years ago). I spoke with many many leaders who said they did their entire weight loss BEFORE exercise was included in the Weight Watchers program. Now it is, but I’m not convinced that the exercise itself reduces weight! It DOES encourage one to eat less (despite people’s preconceived ideas). It DOES tend to make people feel better.
I’m now in a wheelchair full time, and I get almost no exercise. And quite overweight :-(, but I don’t think a lack of exercise per se is WHY I’m overweight. One does tend to snack more sitting around the house. I won’t claim that I wouldn’t actually use more calories if I had more exercise, but seriously, it’s a calorie intake that is the major factor!

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