MYTHBUSTERS: Starvation Mode

shmaffer

Please everyone - read this!!!

http://fattyfightsback.blogspot.com/2009/03/mtyhbusters-starvation-mode.html

jbucci1186

nice

btmadison

wow thank you for posting this!

erickirb

Please everyone - read this!!!

http://fattyfightsback.blogspot.com/2009/03/mtyhbusters-starvation-mode.html

But the bid thing is misses is where the weight comes from. If you don't eat enough your body will break down muscle to use as fuel, not just fat. If you burn muscle, your metabolism slows down. Starvation mode does not mean you wont lose weight, it is when you slow your metabolism down and when you eat normal again you gain as your BMR would be lower than what MFP would predict due to loss of muscle mass.

hunterzmomma

nice!!

hpsnickers1

Please everyone - read this!!!

http://fattyfightsback.blogspot.com/2009/03/mtyhbusters-starvation-mode.html

But the bid thing is misses is where the weight comes from. If you don't eat enough your body will break down muscle to use as fuel, not just fat. If you burn muscle, your metabolism slows down. Starvation mode does not mean you wont lose weight, it is when you slow your metabolism down and when you eat normal again you gain as your BMR would be lower than what MFP would predict due to loss of muscle mass.

Exactly. In Anorexics, body fat as a percentage of overall body weight goes up because they lose so much muscle mass while the body holds onto the fat mass.

johnwhitent

Bump so I can read the angry replies! Eat good, healthy, nutritious meals that provide all the nutrients you need and exercise daily and you can ignore all the diet talk and programs.

PS: The debate about the body using muscle as fuel is addressed by the author down in the comments.

ladyhawk00

This blog ignores the many scientific, reproducable, peer-reviewed studies that confirm the fact that starvation mode (or famine response, or adaptive thermogenesis) DOES happen. And the person clearly didn't actually read the Minnesota study, as she takes many statements and statistics from the study out of context and misuses them to justify her ideas. Really not very credible.

Starvation mode, as a concept, IS often applied too generally and overused - but that doesn't mean it doesn't exist.

A different point of view:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/230930-starvation-mode-how-it-works

And just some of the research:

http://www.ajcn.org/content/53/4/826.full.pdf+html
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2613433?dopt=Abstract
http://www.ajcn.org/content/49/1/93.full.pdf+html
http://www.ajcn.org/content/45/2/391.full.pdf+html
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=6694559&dopt=AbstractPlus
http://www.ajcn.org/content/57/2/127.full.pdf
http://www.ajcn.org/content/51/2/167.abstract?ck=nck
http://www.nature.com/ijo/journal/v32/n3/abs/0803720a.html
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0887/is_n7-8_v15/ai_18602507/
http://www.amazon.com/Biology-Human-Starvation-I/dp/0816672342/ref=pd_sim_b_3
http://www.amazon.com/Biology-Human-Starvation-II/dp/0816672334/ref=pd_sim_b_2

peterson_jessica

Thank you for posting this! Everyone who has ever posted & told someone they're "not eating enough to lose weight" should have this thrown in their face!

Michelle9939

Please everyone - read this!!!

http://fattyfightsback.blogspot.com/2009/03/mtyhbusters-starvation-mode.html

But the bid thing is misses is where the weight comes from. If you don't eat enough your body will break down muscle to use as fuel, not just fat. If you burn muscle, your metabolism slows down. Starvation mode does not mean you wont lose weight, it is when you slow your metabolism down and when you eat normal again you gain as your BMR would be lower than what MFP would predict due to loss of muscle mass.

Thank you!

Rae6503

I agree that "starvation mode" is a bad term. However it obvious from many personal stories on these boards that metabolism adjusts and if you eat too little you won't lose as quickly as you would if you eat more, additionally you'll lose muscle instead of fat. So when it comes down to it, wouldn't you rather lose by eating more? Wouldn't you rather retain as much muscle as possible?

rebysue

The article points out that you shouldn't go too low on calories without doctor supervision to add vitamins necessary to conterbalance the lack of vitamins from food. Duh! Doesn't that kind of contradict the point of the article? The normal, average Joe doing the diet thing on their own shouldn't go below 1200 calories to get the nutrients needed for normal body function. I do agree that the term "starvation mode" is WAY overused in these forums. BUT my husband and I are both living proof that eating more (if not under constant doctor supervision ) really does have merrit. We both completely stalled out on our weight loss and adding calories (and no, I'm not talking eating 2200 calories here, I am talking about eating the "recommended" amount vs. going way below) jump started the weight loss again. I think there are some good points in the article but I think it all comes down to doing what works for you and YOUR body.

erickirb

Thank you for posting this! Everyone who has ever posted & told someone they're "not eating enough to lose weight" should have this thrown in their face!

Yes but they could be losing muscle mass, I am pretty sure than 99% of the people on MFP that are looking at losing weigh are looking at losing fat, not muscle and some fat.

The problem with this being posted now is going to give justification that those not eating enough are doing something good to lose weight, but it is not healthy to do it this way and MFP is all about healthy weight loss.

starberi30

thanks for the info!... in the articles and in the responses!

great post

theresamommyof4

Please everyone - read this!!!

http://fattyfightsback.blogspot.com/2009/03/mtyhbusters-starvation-mode.html

But the bid thing is misses is where the weight comes from. If you don't eat enough your body will break down muscle to use as fuel, not just fat. If you burn muscle, your metabolism slows down. Starvation mode does not mean you wont lose weight, it is when you slow your metabolism down and when you eat normal again you gain as your BMR would be lower than what MFP would predict due to loss of muscle mass.

I know that's the general idea around here, but from the studies I've read, your body breaks down fat first, and only when you are truly starving does it burn muscle in a last ditch effort to preserve life. As with any weight loss program, a little muscle is lost if you aren't busy about building it, but to say that when you have a body full of fat (that was designed to be used as fuel) would be skipped over to use muscle instead... it just doesn't make logical sense.

Elaine005

Well, when that little red tag on myfitnesspal food summary pops up telling me I'm not eating enough I'm going to stop worrying about my calories being too low! Anyway, I'm pretty sure if I weighed everything I ate I'd find my recorded guesses about how many grams I consumed would be about 30% low (just like almost everyone else). thanks so much for sharing this info.

rachmaree

Please everyone - read this!!!

http://fattyfightsback.blogspot.com/2009/03/mtyhbusters-starvation-mode.html

But the bid thing is misses is where the weight comes from. If you don't eat enough your body will break down muscle to use as fuel, not just fat. If you burn muscle, your metabolism slows down. Starvation mode does not mean you wont lose weight, it is when you slow your metabolism down and when you eat normal again you gain as your BMR would be lower than what MFP would predict due to loss of muscle mass.

^^this^^

ladyhawk00

Please everyone - read this!!!

http://fattyfightsback.blogspot.com/2009/03/mtyhbusters-starvation-mode.html

But the bid thing is misses is where the weight comes from. If you don't eat enough your body will break down muscle to use as fuel, not just fat. If you burn muscle, your metabolism slows down. Starvation mode does not mean you wont lose weight, it is when you slow your metabolism down and when you eat normal again you gain as your BMR would be lower than what MFP would predict due to loss of muscle mass.

I know that's the general idea around here, but from the studies I've read, your body breaks down fat first, and only when you are truly starving does it burn muscle in a last ditch effort to preserve life. As with any weight loss program, a little muscle is lost if you aren't busy about building it, but to say that when you have a body full of fat (that was designed to be used as fuel) would be skipped over to use muscle instead... it just doesn't make logical sense.

This is sort of true for those who are obese or morbidly obese, as there are adequate fat stores to prevent too much muscle loss. (But there are still other requirements, such as micros, that must be met) and other risks -

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/222019-60-lbs-in-60-days?hl=60+lbs

And the point is that it takes a LOT of fat stores to prevent the loss of muscle and decreased metabolism - and it's simply not necessary to decrease intake this far to lose weight and it generally backfires, whether because of decreased metabolism or simply feelings of deprivation and binges. Why risk it?

jess213tx

Thanks for sharing! This is a concept that has confused the crap out of me for the last month - just because it didn't make sense to me that I should always make sure I am eating at least 1200 calories a day when a 6'1" male also has this same eating threshold.

bellinachuchina

Great comment from the blog:

"a fabrication to keep people in perpetual diet failure. If everyone succeeded on their diets and dieting really wasn't that complex, what then would we do with the supplement and meat magazine industry? Starvation mode - what a great excuse to blow a diet, and a piece of worthless pseudoscience garbage"

:flowerforyou:

ladyhawk00

Thanks for sharing! This is a concept that has confused the crap out of me for the last month - just because it didn't make sense to me that I should always make sure I am eating at least 1200 calories a day when a 6'1" male also has this same eating threshold.

A 6'1" male does NOT have the same threshold. It is simply that MFP set the floor at 1200 because they can only have one and the majority of the users are women (and women are far more likely to undereat.) The 1200 comes from WHO and ACSM, as the recommended minimum intake for the average woman to receive adequate nutrition. The recommended minimum intake for men is 1500.

erickirb

Please everyone - read this!!!

http://fattyfightsback.blogspot.com/2009/03/mtyhbusters-starvation-mode.html

But the bid thing is misses is where the weight comes from. If you don't eat enough your body will break down muscle to use as fuel, not just fat. If you burn muscle, your metabolism slows down. Starvation mode does not mean you wont lose weight, it is when you slow your metabolism down and when you eat normal again you gain as your BMR would be lower than what MFP would predict due to loss of muscle mass.

I know that's the general idea around here, but from the studies I've read, your body breaks down fat first, and only when you are truly starving does it burn muscle in a last ditch effort to preserve life. As with any weight loss program, a little muscle is lost if you aren't busy about building it, but to say that when you have a body full of fat (that was designed to be used as fuel) would be skipped over to use muscle instead... it just doesn't make logical sense.

Not true, fat cannot be broken down fast enough to use for a large caloric deficit. 99% of people lose muscle as they lose weight, the smaller the deficit, the less muscle as a % of total weight loss would be.

PJilly

Starvation mode isn't a myth. People who say you won't lose weight because you're in starvation mode are oversimplifying the concept and may even be misinformed, but that doesn't mean starvation mode doesn't exist. If you you don't give your body adequate fuel, your metabolism will slow down to survive on the fuel you do give it. You may still lose weight, but if you could lose the same amount of weight (and likely a higher percentage of it from fat) while eating more, why wouldn't you want to?

myofibril

Please everyone - read this!!!

http://fattyfightsback.blogspot.com/2009/03/mtyhbusters-starvation-mode.html

I don't see a single mention of adapative thermogenesis in that "article." A bit of a strange omission don't you think?

ninerbuff

I know that's the general idea around here, but from the studies I've read, your body breaks down fat first, and only when you are truly starving does it burn muscle in a last ditch effort to preserve life. As with any weight loss program, a little muscle is lost if you aren't busy about building it, but to say that when you have a body full of fat (that was designed to be used as fuel) would be skipped over to use muscle instead... it just doesn't make logical sense.

Post the studies. The body likes to store fat. It's efficient at it (it's obvious when you see overweight and obese people). The body DOESN'T store protein for muscle retention. That's why it's an essential along with certain fats.

reneeot

the problem with science, is that everybody does studies to back their side of the story!! I wish science could have a pow wow and really figure out what is the truth!!! That way conflicting information would not be the status quo!! :-)

Goal_Seeker_1988

bump

Kristhin

Why would that be a strange omission?

I'm so glad for this article to have come out. Its really annoying how many people are obsessed with "starvation mode" on this site.

reneeot--science is great, but you have to find out who the study was funded by before you believe what a study says.

For example, many people tout around scientific data saying meat is good for you and doesn't cause health problems, but these studies are funded by the USDA. Coincidence? NO.

Heather75

Well, I sure am glad this is all sorted out. I would hate for anyone to be confused.

myofibril

Why would that be a strange omission?

Because on a scientific basis, not the ramblings contained in somebody's blog, adapative thermogenesis is what is more commonly referred to as "starvation mode."

If you want a well reasoned counterpoint read the following:http://www.burnthefat.com/starvation_mode.html

Rae6503

Starvation mode isn't a myth. People who say you won't lose weight because you're in starvation mode are oversimplifying the concept and may even be misinformed, but that doesn't mean starvation mode doesn't exist. If you you don't give your body adequate fuel, your metabolism will slow down to survive on the fuel you do give it. You may still lose weight, but if you could lose the same amount of weight (and likely a higher percentage of it from fat) while eating more, why wouldn't you want to?

This exactly. I like to eat.