The world we live in and the food we eat have dramatically changed
over time. But our biology has largely stayed the same. It can trigger
us to believe that we are at risk starvation, and make us look for
food rich in energy, salt, fat and sugar.
Think about our everyday life: most of us commute by car or public
transportation to work. We have elevators and escalators to take us
where we need to go without a drop of sweat. Office jobs and city life
often mean that we have to sit more and for extended periods of time.
We are surrounded by lots of tasty food and drink that we have easy
access to. And there’s so much to worry about and catch up on –
whether it’s at work, in our private lives, or on social media. So, we
sleep less and stress more.
But not many of us are aware of how all these things are linked to
obesity. In order to understand this, we need to travel back in time.
“Eat or be eaten!” Imagine living 50,000 years ago in the Stone Age.
All our ancestors cared about was chasing calories through hunting,
gathering or fishing. That, and avoiding becoming meal of the day for
large predators.
Food was scarce, so being well fed meant a higher chance of
survival, and also a higher chance of reproduction. The key to success
was getting hold of food with a lot of fat, sugar and salt. That’s why
our bodies have learned to look out for and favour energy-rich foods
to get through periods of famine.
You might now think that we must be quite different from our
ancestors. But the systems that helped them to survive are still
active in our bodies today and often work outside our conscious awareness.
Food manufacturers, supermarkets, restaurants and take-away chains
have picked up on our food preferences. They now offer a huge variety
of cheap, delicious and energy-rich foods that combine salt, sugar and
fat. This is a powerful combination for our senses – far more powerful
than our brains have evolved to deal with. That’s why it’s hard to
resist the enticing smell of food we are now surrounded by.
We shouldn’t be surprised when we super-size our takeaway order or
fill our shopping cart even though we are not hungry. Our ability to
resist these deliberately tempting foods is determined by a range of
factors, including genetics, and varies from person to person.
So, the global rise in obesity is not the result of a sudden loss of
willpower. Instead, weight gain is understood as a natural reaction to
living in an environment that has changed faster than our species has
been able to adapt to.
Our modern environment contains many factors that put us at risk of
obesity. A lot of these factors are beyond our control, but
fortunately there are still a lot of things we can do. Restructuring
your environment is one of them.
For a guide to restructuring your environment, read the article Hack
your hunger: How to plan, prepare and eat healthy food.
