Starvation Mode. Myth?
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nitarongish
Posts: 114 Member
Hi everyone. I was doing some research on the "starvation mode". Numerous times I googled and came up with these kind of things. I'm not really taking one side or another. For me, I don't eat back those calories. I don't get hungry, I'm energetic and I'm losing weight. For others I know they do and it helps them greatly. Maybe it just depends on the body type. I thought I would post this for you and you can make up your own mind. Please let me know your feelings. Thanks.
The idea that "not eating enough" causes the body to stop losing weight because it goes into "starvation mode" is a popular myth among dieters.
Restricting calories during weight loss lowers metabolism1 because the body becomes more efficient, requiring fewer calories to perform the necessary daily functions for survival. Consequently, this can slow (but not stop) the anticipated rate of weight loss.
For example, if an individual needs 2,000 calories per day to maintain weight, reducing intake to 1,500 calories, assuming exercise stays the same, should provide a 1 pound per week weight loss (Note: 1 pound of weight is equivalent to about 3,500 calories). Furthermore, reducing to 1,000 calories should result in a weight loss of 2 pounds per week and going down to 500 calories a day should result in a weight loss of 3 pounds per week. However, if an individual actually reduces their intake to 500 calories, the weight loss would not likely be a steady 3 pounds per week because of the reduced metabolic rate. It would likely be around 2¼ to 2½ pounds. This "lower than expected" rate of weight loss is a lot different than "no" weight loss as the "starvation mode" notion proposes.
It is unclear as to whether the relationship between reduced caloric intake and a lower metabolism follows a straight path or becomes more pronounced the greater the caloric reduction. Some studies have found no significant reduction in metabolism until the caloric restriction is quite large (e.g. 800 calories or less per day).2 Others suggest a linear relationship with small reductions in metabolism accompanying small reductions in caloric restriction, with the gap increasing as the caloric deficit is enlarged.
While there is no biologic evidence to support the "starvation mode" myth, there may be behavioral reasons why weight loss stops when calories are severely reduced. Over-restriction of calorie intake, known as high dietary restraint is linked to periods of overeating, hindering successful weight loss.
This was taken from the Weight Watcher's Research Department, The Science Center. I've never been on Weight Watcher's and know very little about them.
The idea that "not eating enough" causes the body to stop losing weight because it goes into "starvation mode" is a popular myth among dieters.
Restricting calories during weight loss lowers metabolism1 because the body becomes more efficient, requiring fewer calories to perform the necessary daily functions for survival. Consequently, this can slow (but not stop) the anticipated rate of weight loss.
For example, if an individual needs 2,000 calories per day to maintain weight, reducing intake to 1,500 calories, assuming exercise stays the same, should provide a 1 pound per week weight loss (Note: 1 pound of weight is equivalent to about 3,500 calories). Furthermore, reducing to 1,000 calories should result in a weight loss of 2 pounds per week and going down to 500 calories a day should result in a weight loss of 3 pounds per week. However, if an individual actually reduces their intake to 500 calories, the weight loss would not likely be a steady 3 pounds per week because of the reduced metabolic rate. It would likely be around 2¼ to 2½ pounds. This "lower than expected" rate of weight loss is a lot different than "no" weight loss as the "starvation mode" notion proposes.
It is unclear as to whether the relationship between reduced caloric intake and a lower metabolism follows a straight path or becomes more pronounced the greater the caloric reduction. Some studies have found no significant reduction in metabolism until the caloric restriction is quite large (e.g. 800 calories or less per day).2 Others suggest a linear relationship with small reductions in metabolism accompanying small reductions in caloric restriction, with the gap increasing as the caloric deficit is enlarged.
While there is no biologic evidence to support the "starvation mode" myth, there may be behavioral reasons why weight loss stops when calories are severely reduced. Over-restriction of calorie intake, known as high dietary restraint is linked to periods of overeating, hindering successful weight loss.
This was taken from the Weight Watcher's Research Department, The Science Center. I've never been on Weight Watcher's and know very little about them.
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Replies
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Starvation mode is NOT a myth. There has been numerous well respected medical organizations that have posted this.
It is completely a real fact. The misconception is that starvation mode happens when you eat less than 1200 calories, which isnt true. Starvation mode happens when you eat less than 50% of what your body is burning on a daily basis, for a prolonged period. (several days)
"Starvation mode", is known in the medical community as adaptive thermogenesis or metabolic adaptation, and is a very, VERY real fact. Try googling "Adaptive thermogenesis"
Oh, and thanks for posting that article. It has some good data. Its a little high detail for alot of folks though.0 -
Fascinating article. Thanks for sharing!0
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interesting0
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I have never heard of this "Starvation Mode". Thank you for bringing it to my attention.0
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Love this article cause I've been hearing a lot of mixed things regarding this. There was a point when I was eating under 1200 calories a day and I was still losing weight like clockwork. Now I will agree it may not be good to do everyday but a few days of being under shouldn't stop your weight loss.0
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I'm not a doctor, just a silly engineer.
My understanding is that our bodies are 60-80% efficient at extracting the nutrients we need, under normal conditions. Thus, if my metabolism is in 'normal' mode; occassionally exceeding my 2000 calorie/day limit may not impact my weight loss.
However, if my body detects that it's operating at a severe defficient, we know from experience, that our metabolism slows down. I believe (with no studies, no reports, no PhD thesis to support this belief) that our metabolism both slows, as well as cranks up the effieciency of what we do eat into the 80-99% range - grabbing nutrients that would have ordinarily passed through our digestive tract. This would be a natural survival mode, IMHO.
I know from experience, that when I fast (it's a religious thing); my body's metabolism slows - and since I"m missing my gal-bladder (thanks for the genes, Mom); when I eat after the fast - well, the reaction is relatively quick and dramatic as my metabolism gets a jump-start. I have noticed that if I eat just another 100 calories a day; I can break through some of the plateau's I've seen.
Just my 2 cents.0 -
hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm0
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Fascinating article. Thanks for sharing!
The problem is going through google. Try MAYO CLINIC0 -
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Everyones body is different. What works for one person may not work for a another. Not everyone goes through a starvation mode, but it is a very common complication in weight loss.0
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Here is an explanation of starvation mode (or survival mode, or famine response, or adaptive thermogenesis or whatever one would like to call it) - the decrease in RMR and loss of lean mass when at too large of a caloric deficit.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/230930-starvation-mode-how-it-works
And here are just some of the medical studies that prove it is not a myth, it has been observed in MANY peer-reviewed, reproducable studies.
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_20 -
bump for killer info dump0
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I think the confusion is in people thinking starvation mode means you will not lose weight, or even gain weight. It's not possible to eat fewer calories than your body needs to survive and gain weight any more than it's possible to put fewer logs on a campfire and end up with a bigger fire. Your body needs fuel. So you can still be starving yourself and be losing weight. The problem is that your body is not getting the food it needs over time, so it converts metabolically active "energy hungry" tissue (muscle) into non-metabolically active tissue (fat) to conserve energy. So you end up skinny with no muscle tone at all. Just look at the body type of people in 3rd world countries where food is truly scarce. It doesn't happen overnight, and I doubt having low intake now and then is going make a big difference, but starvation mode certainly doesn't make you gain weight.0
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Many of these articles are based on what someone defines as "normal". Now my cardiologist put me on a 1200 calorie diet 35 fat grams 10-12 sat fat and 200 cholesteral. Period! No eatting back calories. Nadda! I'm listening to him since I'm not from the "norm" and I am trying to avoid a stint. And I really really really don't feel like having a heart attack today. PT and Nutritionalist never told me "oh no he is putting you in starvation mode" More like when your not obese we will re-evaluate.
Like any weight loss or lifestyle change.....a good physical and medical release always helps. Everyone here is different. We all have different medical issues going on.
I have blood test done every three months to check my vitamin, iron, all of it. Yes they check muscles since I had deteriation from an accident.0 -
Also, just FYI, in response to OP's comment regarding "not being hungry, having energy and losing weight"...
Chronic lack of appetite can be a signal of severely decreased metabolism. A couple of threads that may help:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/175241-a-personal-view-on-exercise-cals-and-underfeeding
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/231636-the-eating-when-you-re-not-hungry-dilemma
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/186814-some-mfp-basics
The hormones that largely control appetite (ghrelin and leptin) WILL be affected by over or undereating (and can be disrupted by other chemical/physical issues). Might help to read this, which explains how they work:
http://physrev.physiology.org/content/85/2/495.full#C._Feeding_Disorders
Hunger (as associated with metabolic rate, which slows in underfeeding) DECREASES at certain points in the process of underfeeding. At an extreme enough level, yes, it can increase. But due to hormonal changes (see above), appetite will DECREASE at certain levels of underfeeding.0 -
In reading the research on adaptive thermogenesis, it is clear that there are "qualifiers" throughout all of the statements. They are full of "some individuals", "seem", "may", "can" and "might" - nothing absolute.
"In summary, there seem to be some obese individuals who clearly overreact in energy expenditure when they are exposed to a negative energy balance. This adaptive thermogenesis may then clearly reduce the ability to achieve a successful body weight loss. To date, there is no clear explanation for the occurrence of such a phenomenon but, as discussed in the next section, we cannot exclude the possibility that it might happen so as to protect body homeostasis."
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/567126_4
My opinion - So, is it a myth - no, is it a fact, not for everyone.0 -
Didn't read replies.
Lyle Mcdonald wrote this:
Q. Some claim that that your body will go into 'starvation mode' if you eat too few calories, preventing you from losing weight and that trying to lose weight by eating fewer calories doesn't work. What do you think?
A. Well there is no doubt that the body slows metabolic rate when you reduce calories or lose weight/fat. There are at least two mechanisms for this.
One is simply the loss in body mass. A smaller body burns fewer calories at rest and during activity. There's not much you can do about that except maybe wear a weighted vest to offset the weight loss, this would help you burn more calories during activity.
However, there's an additional effect sometimes referred to as the adaptive component of metabolic rate. Roughly, that means that your metabolic rate has dropped more than predicted by the change in weight.
So if the change in body mass predicts a drop in metabolic rate of 100 calories and the measured drop is 150 calories, the extra 50 is the adaptive component. The mechanisms behind the drop are complex involving changes in leptin, thyroid, insulin and nervous system output (this system is discussed to some degree in all of my books except my first one).
In general, it's true that metabolic rate tends to drop more with more excessive caloric deficits (and this is true whether the effect is from eating less or exercising more); as well, people vary in how hard or fast their bodies shut down. Women's bodies tend to shut down harder and faster.
But here's the thing: in no study I've ever seen has the drop in metabolic rate been sufficient to completely offset the caloric deficit. That is, say that cutting your calories by 50% per day leads to a reduction in the metabolic rate of 10%. Starvation mode you say. Well, yes. But you still have a 40% daily deficit.
In one of the all-time classic studies (the Minnesota semi-starvation study), men were put on 50% of their maintenance calories for 6 months. It measured the largest reduction in metabolic rate I've ever seen, something like 40% below baseline. Yet at no point did the men stop losing fat until they hit 5% body fat at the end of the study.
Other studies, where people are put on strictly controlled diets have never, to my knowledge, failed to acknowledge weight or fat loss.
This goes back to the under-reporting intake issue mentioned above. I suspect that the people who say, "I'm eating 800 calories per day and not losing weight; it must be a starvation response" are actually eating far more than that and misreporting or underestimating it. Because no controlled study that I'm aware of has ever found such an occurrence.
So I think the starvation response (a drop in metabolic rate) is certainly real but somewhat overblown. At the same time, I have often seen things like re-feeds or even taking a week off a diet do some interesting things when people are stalled. One big problem is that, quite often, weekly weight or fat loss is simply obscured by the error margin in our measurements.
Losing between 0.5 and 1 pound of fat per week won't show up on the scale or calipers unless someone is very lean, and changes in water weight, etc. can easily obscure that. Women are far more sensitive to this. Their weight can swing drastically across a month's span depending on their menstrual cycle.
Thing is this, at the end of the day, to lose weight or fat, you have to create a caloric deficit, there's no magical way to make it happen without affecting energy balance. You either have to reduce food intake, increase activity, or a combination of both.
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/0 -
Many of these articles are based on what someone defines as "normal". Now my cardiologist put me on a 1200 calorie diet 35 fat grams 10-12 sat fat and 200 cholesteral. Period! No eatting back calories. Nadda! I'm listening to him since I'm not from the "norm" and I am trying to avoid a stint. And I really really really don't feel like having a heart attack today. PT and Nutritionalist never told me "oh no he is putting you in starvation mode" More like when your not obese we will re-evaluate.
Like any weight loss or lifestyle change.....a good physical and and medical release always helps. Everyone here is different. We all have different medical issues going on.
Fact is, when you have large amounts of fat stores (typically above 35% BF for women), you are not generally at risk of starvation mode in a way that will have a significant effect. You WILL still have decreased metabolism, but because you have a lot of available fat mass for the body to access to supplement energy needs, it won't be enough to affect your weight loss.
However, as you decrease body fat, the body cannot access it as reliably or quickly to supplement energy needs. This is when too large of a caloric deficit becomes more of an issue and more of a balancing act.
ANYone with significant medical conditions has special needs and many physiological processes that apply to the vast majority of the population do not apply - that's pretty obvious. Clearly, when obesity is causing, or influences, a medical condition in such a way that the risk of staying obese carries more risk than some (usually temporary) metabolic damage, then the same concepts must be re-evaluated. This is usually the case with weight loss surgery, as well. To put it more simply, it's not that the LCD or VLCD (low or very low calorie diet) does not carry risks - it's that there are some circumstances in which the benefits outweigh those risks. But that is very rarely the case for someone who is not obese or morbidly obese, and NEVER the case for someone not under the care/supervision of a qualified professional providing a specific diet (ie, most of the people on MFP.)0 -
I have never heard of this "Starvation Mode". Thank you for bringing it to my attention.
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it is a myth. there has been no real scientific studies to show this happens..its a popular myth perpetuated by the uniformed. its spread by these popular tv trainers and other tv so called 'doctors'. so it just goes around and around and people believe it because a lot of people believe it. just like the whole we need to eat at least 1200 cals myth.
what really happens is metabolic adaptation. look it up.
technically when anyone is a on a calorie restrictive diet of any kind they are 'starving' themselves. thats how we lose weight.0
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