Why We Eat (Too Much): The New Science of Appetite

by Andrew Jenkinson

Summary The secret of successful and sustainable weight loss is to understand how our bodies regulate our body weight set-point. It is not as simple as energy in and energy out. Now that we know that the set-point is the master controller of our weight, we need to find out how our brains calculate where it is set. Various factors in our environment, our history and our family background determine our individual set-point – whether it will be set as slim, obese or somewhere in between. Later chapters will discuss how to identify the signals (in the type of foods we eat and the way we live) that control our weight set-point. Once we understand these signals, our weight set-point, and therefore our weight, will finally be under our control.