No need to worry about fighting the flab when you hit your 40s. An exchange of letters in last week's New Scientist (19 July 2008, p73) suggests that putting on a few pounds as you get older is perfectly natural and, in fact, because it's an evolutionary development, trying to buck the trend is probably a waste of time.
The question on the magazine's 'Last Word' page was: "Why, as we age, do we find it easier to gain body fat and … why is it so much more difficult to get rid of?"
Apparently, our bodies become more efficient at storing fat as we get older. One respondent (from University of California) put the age-related fat issue down to evolution, saying that, in primitive societies older people wouldn't get priority for scarce food, so it's in their interest to develop a 'store' for lean times.
Wednesday 23 July 2008
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2 comments:
am not overweight but now have flab above my waist. How to get rid of it, if possible?
Irony approaching:
Go down to your local bookstore (or in your library, if that's where you work), and grab two handfuls of weighty tomes. Then raise and lower your 'weights'…
I guess exercise is one possible solution, but please don't take my word for it. I am NOT qualified in health, fitness etc.
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