[한경 머니 기고 = 윤대현 서울대학교병원 강남센터 정신의학과 교수] In the time of Corona 19, the amount of exercise decreased and the visceral fat increased as I enjoyed delivery food along with home-cooking meals.
Spring is in full swing and summer is coming soon. We try to change towards healthy behavior with a new mind, but it is not easy for everyone. Don’t blame yourself too much and start with a small plan. Big plans give the brain a thrill, and even if there is an experience of failure, there is a tendency to make big plans once more. This is called ‘futile hope syndrome’. It is a kind of addictive behavior to the pleasure of big plans. If you fact-check, it is effective to change your behavior by starting with a realistic goal of exercising ‘at least once a week’ rather than ‘everyday’ and feeling a success experience, and gradually raising the goal level.
It’s a different resolution, but I hear complaints that visceral fat doesn’t want to leave even though I’m exercising regularly. If you look at the simple formula, if you exercise a lot, you consume a lot of energy, so if you maintain the same amount of food, visceral fat should decrease. But why is this unwelcome guy holding me?
Recent studies on exercise show that the body’s response is not simple. Even now, an African tribe living by ‘hunting and gathering’ is said to have exercised an average of 14 km per day, but there was no significant difference in average energy consumption compared to urban dwellers with much less exercise. This means that the common sense that energy consumption increases in proportion to the amount of exercise may not necessarily be true. There is also a study that the amount of energy consumed gradually decreased when a marathon was continuously run. It may be a disappointing fact to those who expected that visceral fat would go away if you exercise hard. In terms of weight control, it is said that exercise alone without diet control may be ineffective.
Why doesn’t energy consumption increase in proportion to exercise? The brain’s control tower can be explained by a higher priority on conserving energy. For example, reduced energy can affect the energy-consuming brain, leading to problems with survival functions such as ‘social connection and communication’. Therefore, there is a hypothesis that when energy consumption increases through exercise, the body minimizes energy consumption by reducing internal activities such as inflammatory response and stress response.
A selfish person who only takes care of himself seems to have an advantage in survival, but there is a paradoxical reaction called helper’s high. It is said that altruistic behavior, along with antidepressant effects, strengthens the heart and leads to longevity. The altruistic behavior that causes helper highs can be an unexpectedly powerful health solution. It is a strange reaction of the body and mind in many ways.
It’s not “it’s okay to be obese”, but don’t push yourself too hard
As most people know that obesity is a risk factor for diabetes, heart disease, and stroke, many people have an obsession with losing weight. Although it is easy to meet diet success stories on social media, it is not easy to escape obesity in reality. Some experience traumatic diet stress. If you lose weight with all your might, but your appetite explodes and you gain weight once more, the cycle repeats itself, leading to low self-esteem and even depression.
The problem is that stress itself is a risk factor for obesity. Trying to lose weight can lead to an absurd situation in which the stress of dieting actually increases the weight. Stress activates the survival system and increases appetite. And so-called ‘food that pleases the heart’, such as high fat or high sugar, makes you more attracted to it. This is to comfort the mind tired of dieting. A diet you start with to be healthy can go in the wrong direction.
Metabolically Healthy Obesity (MHO) is a term that refers to a case in which obesity is present, but metabolic functions such as the endocrine system remain relatively healthy. You can see people around you who are obese but are living a healthy life. According to the standard, 20% to 40% are MHO, and there is also a report that there is no significant difference in mortality due to diabetes or heart disease compared to the normal weight group even following follow-up for a considerable period of time. There are studies that show that visceral fat is more harmful to health than subcutaneous fat. It is said that there are relatively good fats, but studies are being conducted to explain MHO.
I don’t mean to say “it’s okay to be obese”. Excessive obesity concerns and diet stress can further harm your health, so we would like to recommend changing your health goal priorities. Do not put yourself under excessive stress by making weight loss a priority, and prioritize relatively actionable goals, such as a healthy diet, light exercise, and hobbies or meetings that relieve stress, and consider weight loss as a natural result. .
And if you are obese, it is important to check if there are any metabolic problems such as diabetes. There are many people who have the idea of going for a test following controlling their weight or that they will control diabetes and blood pressure by controlling their weight without taking medication. If necessary, we recommend that you take a healthy lifestyle such as exercise and diet while proceeding with medication if necessary, and then discuss with your doctor regarding reducing the amount of medication little by little when you naturally lose weight.
Written by Daehyun Yoon, Professor of Psychiatry at Seoul National University Hospital Gangnam Center
