I just watched an episode of House and he diagnosed a girl with Cushing’s – an illness that can cause obesity.
How is that possible? I was under the impression that our bodies use energy we get from food, and if it doesn’t get the food it’ll burn fat resulting in us getting slimmer – how can a disease change that?
How does it not go against some laws of thermodynamics? Maybe I’m just being silly.
In: Biology
It doesn’t go against laws of thermodynamics.
Energy in = energy out + accumulation.
Hormone imbalances can result in our body preferring accumulation of fat vs expending energy. E.g. they can make you feel lethargic regardless of how much energy you consume, and tell your body to create more fat cells.
If you’ve ever felt tired before after eating a big meal, it should make sense that the same can happen but worse and over long periods of time.
Hormone imbalances can also speed up your digestive system, triggering your hunger response sooner and more frequently, encouraging to eat more, even if you don’t end up expending the energy.
Hormones can also just trigger cravings. Ask any pregnant woman or her partner.
You’re completely right that weight gain (and loss) is a function of how much energy we intake vs how much we expend. Diseases and the ensuing hormone imbalances are able to impact those factors indirectly.
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