I'm documenting every part of the BBC Documentary 'Why are Thin People Not Fat' while I watch it. Don't forget to watch part 1 and part 2!

Wow. It's so awesome to hear a doctor say humans have a biological determined natural weight, that varies from person to person. "Our bodies do their best to maintain that weight: whether it's fat or thin."
That doesn't mean you can't influence your body shape, but your body will constantly try to bring you back to whatever your normal body weight is. And that is different for every person!

Dr. Allison at the University of Alabama at Birmingham says our 'normal' body weight is shaped even before we are born. Factors such as how old your mother was when you were born, and the amount of calories taken during pregnancy play a role.

This video covers week one of the experiment -- boy, what a ridiculous amount of food these folks had to eat...I'd almost feel bad for them! It's super interesting to see big differences in weight gain at the very start of this experiment. Can't wait to see part 4!

I'm documenting every part of the BBC Documentary 'Why are Thin People Not Fat' while I watch it. Don't forget to watch part 1.

Wow, I learned some CRAZY things in this episode!
Fat people used to be the survivors of society, having fat is a good thing, and...I probably would have never survived if I was born a few centuries ago. Phew, I'm glad it's 2012 ;) Watch the second episode here, and read my comments below :)

Why fat is good

Inside fat tissue, apparently, the fat cells have oil droplets stored -- which can be converted into energy if the body needs it. So, your fat is your body's built-in emergency storage system. The more fat you have, the longer you can go without eating. Apparently, one very obese man once lasted a year without food! (just watch the video, it's amazing).But the average person can last about a month without food.

Survival of the fattest

When food wasn't always readily available, people who were chubbier were more likely to survive, and pass on that gene to their children -- which could explain why a large part of the current population has a tendency to gain weight easily.

Survival of the thinnest

Fat storage used to help in survival,but that has changed over time. Nowadays, it's not needed to go without food for several days or even weeks. Nowadays, people who exercise and eat well are more likely to live longer.

I bumped across a very interesting video series on YouTube the other day, called: "Why are thin people not fat." "It's a BBC Horizon documentary that researched the 'reason' behind some people being naturally thin. I'm going to document every video (there are 7) after I've watched it! This is part 1.

Naturally thin? Go on a fat diet!

This video was SOOOO interesting for me to watch. It was great to see some fellow naturally thin people speak their mind. I kept saying: "me too, me too!" while watching the video haha :)

The study focused on men and women who said they hardly ever watched what they ate because they hardly gained weight. The researchers told them to STUFF IT. Literally.
The men and women had to eat at least double their regular calories (about 5,000 kcal), and on top of that - they had to avoid exercise for one month. The purpose is to find out why some people stay naturally thin, despite never having been on a diet.

It's a pretty controversial overeating experiment, and I have to admit, all the whipped cream, cakes, greasy fries and big burgers made me a tid bit nauseous!

Some people can never become obese: Vermont State Prison study

I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the American Vermont State Prison study...someone had already done research on this 40 years ago?!
In 1967, researchers tried to find out what happens to hormonal changes in the human body when we become seriously overweight. They took a group of prisoners and made them fat by letting them eat whatever they could physically handle. If they gained 25% of their body weight, they would get an early release from prison.
BUT: some of the prisoners could never reach the target. Two of them got stuck at 21%, and one of them at 18% increase. It seemed, that for some people, getting obese is not unlikely, it's practically impossible.

Skinny guys vs skinny girls

Another interesting aspect of this video was a short soundbite by a woman who said "a lot of people understand why a guy would want to eat whatever he can, but a lot of people don't understand why a girl would want to get fat." I have found this double standard SO often. It seems that it's much more acceptable for guys to be thin and eat a lot, then for a girl to be thin and complaining about her weight.

I am VERY curious to see how the guys vs the girls are going to do in this research study! I can't wait to watch the second video!!! :)