Leptin the Caveman Secret to Weight Loss

The obesity epidemic in North America is reaching scary proportions and it is an issue for many of my clients. Many of them have tried weight loss programmes which are based on the idea that calories in should be less than calories out. In other words you eat less than you burn off. This is simple logic but unfortunately it does not take into account how the body really works.

Humans and our ancestors have been walking the earth for nearly 250,000 million years. Modern man, distinct from cavemen, came to the fore when they began to develop agriculture some 10,000 years ago. With this change so the food supply became more consistent compared to a constant cycle of feast and famine. And here in lies the problem. Our bodies have been programmed to deal with this cycle and is totally unaware there is a supermarket down the road stuffed with food.

Up until the late 1990's science had thought our fat cells we develop were a useless inconvenience with no function. It actually turns out that they produce a number of important hormones including one called Leptin. It was also discovered that Leptin plays an important roll in weight loss.

During times of feast the fat cells of cavemen would contain large amounts of Leptin. Leptin would then be released by the fat cells and taken by your blood to a part of your brain called your hypothalamus. With large amounts of Leptin going to the brain so this would tell the brain that the would be sufficient mounts of fat available if famine set in. The brain would therefore keep the rate we burn fat at a healthy level and our appetites low.

During times of famine the amount of Leptin fat cells of our caveman will be low. This will mean there less send to the brain which an indicator that there is insufficient fat stores. It then signals the body to reduce the rate it burns food and increases our appetite. Hence our caveman puts on more fat to cope with fat. This is just a demonstration of our bodies innate survival mechanism.

So why does Leptin play such an important role in weight gain for modern man.

The weight problem for modern man is Leptin Resistance. The above mechanism works just fine if the leptin can communicate with the brain. However when leptin cannot get to the brain will think that fat stores are low so lowering the rate we burn food and increase our appetite. If we are on a diet that where we are eating less than we burn then that is fine but as soon as we go back to our normal diet we put on weight.

The relevance of leptin resistance to modern man can be seen in what causes it:

• Calorific Restriction - following a diet where you reduce the amount you eat.
• Insulin spikes - caused by excess sugar consumption.
• Poor sleep patterns
• Stress.
• Overeating.
• Excess Triglycerides which is caused by excess sugar.
• Fructose consumption from High Fructose Corn Sugar (HFCS).
• Wheat.

Any of these factors familiar!

If you follow a reduced calorie diet then you will lose weight but as soon as you fall of the wagon, leptin resistance will lead to weight gain.

The solution is taking a more holistic caveman approach to weight loss who didn't eat large amounts of sugar, HFCS or wheat, had reduced stress (apart from when he was chased by a sabre tooth tiger) and slept between the fall and rise of the sun.

If you are interested in finding out more about this approach to weight loss I highly recommend The Dark Side of Fat loss by Sean Croxton from Underground Wellness.