Thin Or Large, Down to Genes?

emmaNEEDSskinny
emmaNEEDSskinny Posts: 317
edited September 30 in Health and Weight Loss
Me,My dad and my mom were talking the other night about how i was shocked i havent weighed over 8 stone despite how i was eating,
my mom said she thinks me and my younger sister shana take after my dad as he was always skinny and had "drain pipe" legs
when he was younger and me and my little sister have always stayed "thin" despite our food intake

but then my mom is overweight and my older sister and younger brother are also close to being overweight just like my mom....

do you think its down to genes or is it more down to many other factors?
are anyone elses family like this? :)

opinions? xxx

Replies

  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    my boyfriend is 6ft2 and very slim due to an incredibly fast metabolism whihc he gets from his tall & thin mum & grandma.

    however all of my family are overweight, but i am not, so i think genes have something to do with it, but its not the only factor.
  • DJH510
    DJH510 Posts: 114 Member
    If you eat more calories than you need, you will gain weight, regardless of any genetic issues. If you haven't gained weight it's because you haven't eaten too much!
  • Sariebon
    Sariebon Posts: 52 Member
    My family is generally very slim when they're younger, but tend to put on weight once they hit their mid 20s. I put this down to nothing but a love of food!
    The only person who is still very thin over 20 in my family is my younger sister, who is also vegetarian and lactose intolerant. I'm border lining overweight myself, but after seeing my family struggle with weight all my life, it's definitely given me the inspiration to do something about it!
  • candistyx
    candistyx Posts: 547 Member
    About 60-80% of the variation in bodyweight between individuals can be attributed to genetics. This is based on twins separated at birth studies and similar.

    Genetics has a big influence, but it influences a LOT of things. For instance, you could genetically have a larger appetite, or your body could genetically preferentially store fat over increasing activity when in calorie surplus. You can fight your genetics, but it will always be more of a struggle than for a person who feels full after 2 bites and wants to run around for hours if they eat too much at a meal.
  • melsinct
    melsinct Posts: 3,512 Member
    If you eat more calories than you need, you will gain weight, regardless of any genetic issues. If you haven't gained weight it's because you haven't eaten too much!

    I agree, with the added caveat that some people have a harder time staying thin than others. However, barring a medical issue (which is an extremely small percentage of all overweight people), you can't blame genetics for being overweight. You can blame your diet and exercise (or lack thereof).
  • TK421NotAtPost
    TK421NotAtPost Posts: 512 Member
    About 60-80% of the variation in bodyweight between individuals can be attributed to genetics. This is based on twins separated at birth studies and similar.

    Genetics has a big influence, but it influences a LOT of things. For instance, you could genetically have a larger appetite, or your body could genetically preferentially store fat over increasing activity when in calorie surplus. You can fight your genetics, but it will always be more of a struggle than for a person who feels full after 2 bites and wants to run around for hours if they eat too much at a meal.

    It gets even more complicated when you put environment into the picture. I think today's environment magnifies genetic differences. As an example, for a person with severe insulin resistance growing up in the South in today's society, being highly overweight at some point in his/her life is virtually guaranteed. However, this may have been much less of a factor 30 years ago.

    But an athletic person with good genes growing up in the same environment may not suffer from the same problem.
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