Inherited weight-problems?

Sonia Jones ND from the Haven Spa and Health Clinic

Chromosomes

Some people say they are overweight because they inherited the problem from their parents. They are right but only to a small extent, maybe they have inherited a tendency to be overweight but they don’t have to make it your lives work. They can play to this weakness with an inactive lifestyle and a poor diet or off-set it with an active lifestyle and good nutrition.

It’s up to you – you can take control.

Do not overlook a very important fact, that bad habits are learned inherited so to speak, and taste buds are developed from childhood depending on what your parents fed you. Born in Japan you will have a fondness for raw fish, born in the US you might have a fondness for doughnuts. This is not inherited genes.

In just about every case of a traditional society moving to towns and cities, and adopting a more ‘Western type diet’, start to suffer more chronic diseases. For instance, American Indians or the Australian Aboriginals were formerly lean and suffered rarely from diabetes. Now these nations have high rates of obesity and suffer chronic problems like diabetes at similar rates to us. This is not entirely due to inherited genes, but due to a change in their food and lifestyle. At the turn of the last century in the US about 5% of people were overweight now it is estimated that about 65% of people are overweight, this is not just due entirely to genes but due to rapid changes in diets, eating habits and lifestyles!!!!