13/11/2023
Some of the potential causes of weight gain are not fully understood and are currently being studied.One possibility is eating late at night. Some evidence, including a 2022 study from Harvard University, suggests that eating late at night may make us hungrier during the day, slow metabolism and increase body fat.Another suspected factor in weight gain is the microbiome in the gut (their genes are called the microbiome). There is substantial evidence that gut microbes may influence appetite, metabolism, blood sugar and fat storage. The strongest support comes from animal studies. In humans, the evidence is less clear."Studies have found that the gut microbes of obese people are different from those of lean people," explains Dr. Apovian."But we don't know if this causes people to become obese. "It could be that people who are genetically programmed to gain weight have a specific microbiome," she notes. Or obese people may eat differently than lean people, which could alter the microbiome. We need more research to find out better answers.
