Combating The Yo-Yo Effect: Avoiding Weight Regain After A Diet
If you are one of those individuals who always regain the lost weight after phases of intense dieting, then the Yo-Yo effect could be the culprit.
The Yo-Yo effect leads to unintentional weight gain after dieting and may prevent people from maintaining the lost weight.
A recent study reports brain-level changes during dieting, increasing hunger and appetite.
Keep reading to learn how to combat the Yo-Yo effect and tips to prevent weight regain after dieting.
Did You Know?
Your genes may be one reason why you tend to regain weight after you lose it. Learn more:
Introduction
Some people are just not able to maintain their weight after a period of intense dieting. The excess weight starts creeping up right after they stop the diet.
In a few months, they regain the weight they lost during dieting.
This is what researchers called the Yo-Yo effect.?
If you also struggle with the Yo-Yo effect, there could be a scientific explanation behind this.?
A 2023 article published by the Max Planck Institute for Metabolism Research suggests that the brain may increase hunger and appetite after dieting, leading to weight regain.?
Why Do Dieters Regain Weight?
There can be several reasons why dieters regain weight after weight loss.
When the body loses fat and muscle, thanks to dieting, it goes into shock and tries to replenish the lost nutrition.?
According to researchers, the body starts producing excess hunger-inducing hormones, which can increase appetite.
As a result, the person starts eating more after a period of the diet, gaining the lost weight quickly.
While losing weight through diet, people generally lose fat and muscle together.?
After discontinuing the diet and starting to eat regular food, fat accumulates much faster than muscles.
The body encourages the person to eat more to build muscle. In this process, the person gains back weight after dieting.
Diet, stress, and mental health are related. A 2020 study reports that specific diets that lack macro and micronutrients can increase the risk of developing stress-related mental disorders.
Stress increases cortisol levels in the body.
Cortisol, in turn, increases appetite and leads to emotional eating or binge eating.?
This could be another reason why people regain weight.
Calorie-deficit diets bring down muscle mass.
Loss of muscle mass affects the metabolism rate. Metabolism is the process by which food is burnt for energy. A higher metabolism means your body digests food easily and quickly uses nutrients.?
People with a low metabolism burn calories much slower, increasing their risk of putting on weight.
A 2015 study reports that a calorie-deficit feeding habit brought down the metabolism rate.
This can lead to weight regain.
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What Is The Yo-Yo Effect?
Psychologist Kelly D. Brownell from Yale University coined the word Yo-Yo effect.
It is also called weight cycling.?
This happens when people go through periods of intentional weight loss followed by unintentional weight regain.
This cycle may continue for long periods without the person being able to maintain the lost weight.
A 2014 study reports that 80% of people who lost weight after following a specific diet regained their weight within one year.
Science Behind The Yo-Yo Effect
Scientists believe that a drastic diet affects the metabolism rate. This could be one reason people regain weight after losing body fat.?
Following a calorie-restricted diet or fasting for longer periods may put the body in a ‘starvation mode.’?
When the body goes into starvation mode, it focuses on preserving energy. As a result, the body may start burning calories slower than the average rate.?
For instance, if your body needed 2100 calories to maintain your weight before the diet, after dieting, the body may need just 1800 calories to support itself.
As a result, after dieting, when you consume the same pre-diet calories of 2100, the excess calories remain unused, leading to weight gain.
Preventing The Yo-Yo Effect: A New Study
A 2023 study published by the Max Planck Institute for Metabolism Research and Harvard Medical School discusses the role of the brain in causing the Yo-Yo effect. ?
Study Details
This study put research mice on a diet and then analyzed their brain signals during and after the diet.?
Study Results
The study reported that after dieting, the communication in the brains of these mice changed significantly.
In the brain, the AgRP neurons in the hypothalamus region are responsible for giving out hunger signals.
While on a diet, these neurons started giving out stronger hunger signals to the brain.
As a result, during the diet and long afterward, the brain received stronger hunger signals.?
Study Conclusion
According to this study, the? AgRP neurons kept sending stronger hunger signals for a long time after the diet phase.?
So, to combat the Yo-Yo effect, the researchers suggest combining dieting with drugs that suppress the brain's hunger signals.
This may prevent people from regaining the lost weight after dieting.?
Tips To Prevent Weight Regain
Summary
References