Are popular myths about weight gain in winter true?

As soon as autumn comes, shorts and bathing suits are left in the deepest corner of the wardrobe. In addition, fruit and vegetables are replaced by hearty meals and all diets are simply forgotten until the end of January. Many people believe that trying to avoid some extra pounds in winter is simply impossible. In fact, it was found that people gain approximately 1-2 kilos during the cold season, but is it really inevitable? Trying to find out that, we give you experts’ comments on two popular myths about eating and weight control in winter:

In order to maintain the heat of the body, you need to eat more.

This popular belief in reality has little truth in it. According to experts, overweight people are even more sensitive to cold than the lean. Doctors explain that we are genetically programmed to store fat for the winter because our ancestor associated cold season with hunger. The problem arises because nowadays it is absolutely not necessary storing fat because we don’t use them as we should. Specialists say that our weight can be effectively controlled by choosing the right foods.

Cool always makes you feel hungry.

If you have enough clothes on yourself and your house temperature is normal, it is hardly likely that the winter will make you feel more hungry than usual. Doctors say that human body’s temperature is stable in every season, however, it does not mean that your hunger is just your imagination. According to the study of mammalian body weight gain led by University of Aberdeen Professor of Endocrinology, Dr. Perry Barrett, the lack of light stimulates the hormone melatonin which leads to hunger and sleepiness. In spring and summer, when we don’t feel lack of light, our body produces less melatonin than in the autumn and winter.

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