|
PFASs - the hidden chemicals in drinking water and foodstuffs that make the world fat
Fat-proof packaging of not so healthy foods such as pizzas and fries, dirt-resistant clothing and non-stick coatings of pans all contain perfluoroalkyl substances [PFASs]. Animal studies suggest that these PFASs, after entering the body through drinking water or junk food, diminish the potential to break down fat reserves. In PLoS Medicine American researchers have published the first human study that confirms this dark suspicion.
Study
About fifteen years ago, 621 Americans participated in the Pounds Lost trial, in which they first went on a weight-loss diet for half a year, and then tried to stay maintain their new weight for a year and a half. Before the experiment started, researchers at the University of Harvard determined the concentration of PFASs in their blood.
One type of PFASs that researchers often find in the blood of humans is perfluorooctanoic acid [PFOA]. In this post we will limit ourselves to PFOA.
Results
The more PFOA there was in the subjects' blood, the less weight they lost in the first six months of the trial - and the larger the regain.
During the trial the researchers also determined the participants' resting metabolic rate [RMR]. That's the amount of energy the subjects used at rest. The RMR decreased during the weight loss phase, but during the weight maintenance phase it increased again. At least: in the subjects with relatively little PFOA in their blood. In the subjects with a lot of PFOA in the blood, the RMR remained low.
Conclusion
"PFASs have been linked with excess weight gain and obesity in animal models, but human data has been sparse", tells research leader and nutritional scientist Qi Sun, who is affiliated with with Harvard Medical School, in a press release. [harvard.edu February 13, 2018]
"Now, for the first time, our findings have revealed a novel pathway through which PFASs might interfere with human body weight regulation and thus contribute to the obesity epidemic."
"We typically think about PFASs in terms of rare health problems like cancer, but it appears they are also playing a role in obesity, a major health problem facing millions around the globe", adds co-author and environmental scientist Philippe Grandjean, who is affiliated with Harvard Chan School. "The findings suggest that avoiding or reducing PFAS exposure may help people maintain a stable body weight after they successfully lose some weight, especially for women."
Just nagging
Because the packaging materials of junk food contain PFASs, people who eat a lot of junk probably have more PFASs in their blood than people with a healthier lifestyle. These people probably consume more bad carbohydrates and fats, may move less, and also have less lean body mass.
Perhaps we should wait for studies that distinguish between those lifestyle effects from the biologicals effects of PFASs before we blame the obesity epidemic on substances in the drinking water.
Source:
PLoS Med. 2018 Feb 13;15(2):e1002502.
More:
Nine easy ways to lose body fat 13.02.2018
Paleo diet makes fat cells lazy (and if you're trying to lose weight, that's exactly what you want) 21.01.2018
Legumes facilitate weight maintenance and fat loss 20.01.2018
Archives:
Weight Loss
 |
 |
 |
|
Is GM corn making Americans fat?
Statisticians at the University of Toledo come up with this hypothesis in Nutrition Research and Practice.
|
The animals on this planet are getting fatter too
According to the biostatistician Yann Klimentidis of the University of Alabama at Birmingham, rhesus monkeys, meerkats, blue monkeys, chimpanzees, mice, rats, cats and dogs are all getting fatter and fatter.
|
These foods are the ultimate fatteners
If you want to lose weight or maintain a healthy weight you are more likely to succeed if you avoid crisps, potatoe products and soft drinks as much as possible.
|
|
|
