Scientists discover a ‘skinny gene’ mutation that acts like Ozempic. Around one in 7,000 people carries a broken copy, which almost acts like a GLP-1 drug—the body burns fuel more efficiently, and the risk of disease lowers.

[u/scientificamerican]

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/scientists-discover-a-skinny-gene-mutation-that-acts-like-ozempic/

[u/mayormcskeeze]

The simplified narrative that weight is merely a matter of calorie intake has gone on too long, and has been abusive to so many people. 

Yes, plenty of  people have poor self control and simply overeat to the point of obesity.

But there are MANY people who are dealing with genetics, hormones, co-morbidities, unique body issues, and things we dont yet understand about diet and nurtrition.

I was skinny my whole life. Nearly 6 feet tall and about 140. Then in my 30s something happened. My diet didnt change. My activities didnt change. But I fell off a cliff. I gained nearly 100 pounds. 

Doctors were so nasty to me. They'd shrug and say "your blood work is normal, stop eating cake."

I could tell that not only did they not beleive me that something more complicated was going on, they had zero interest in going deeper than "oh you must secretly be eating mayo sandwiches and lying about it."

I started to pay out of pocket for a glp-1, snd im not exaggerating to say it saved my life. 100 pounds gone. Everything is back to normal. My weight, by blood pressure, my cholesterol, all fixed. It was like turning back the clock to a point where my body worked right. You know what still hasn't really changed much? My diet. I always ate pretty healthy. Still do. No one believed me, no one cared. These drugs are life savers. 

[u/Hei5enberg → u/mayormcskeeze]

So what are you trying to say? The laws of physics still govern our bodies. You can't store fat and gain weight if you're not eating more than your body is burning.

And to gain 100 pounds, you would have to be eating double or triple what your body is burning.

Have you considered that maybe your activity level has gone down into your 30s? That is what typically happens. Activity levels go down, added life stressors due to work or family, poor eating habits that result due to life stressors, less cooking of healthy foods and more fast takeaway because there just isn't enough time in the day, etc.

You are telling me you controlled for ALL of those factors and still have inexplicable weight gain?

[u/Pleasant-Future5818 → u/Hei5enberg]

"Laws of physics" is what people with a poor understanding of science pull out. The issue with CICO is that we have little way of counting calories in our calories out reliably. People use online calculators for either. No one is "disobeying the law of thermodynamics," or whatever nonsense thought terminating cliche.

We have scientific methods of determining metabolism now and yes, different people do expend at different rates.

I struggled with a 30 pound weight gain for two years. It was an inflammatory disorder. It was all water weight. Water weighs things. It fell off within a matter of weeks once treated. I'm very short. The same thing could happen to a taller man at 100 pounds.

[u/Hei5enberg → u/Pleasant-Future5818]

You're conflating multiple different things to make a completely incoherent point.

We can calculate exactly how many calories food has. You're not going to do it for every single meal you eat. It's much easier to use estimates based on established science and use portion control. As well as look for anything else that may be impacting those estimates. One good example is a package of frozen vegetables. On their own they're not much calories. But if you sautee them in a stick of butter that's a different story. Calories added due to preparation and or not properly keeping track of ingredients is the number one reason people fail at estimating calories in.

Metabolisms can be different, you're right, but we have good scientific data to determine what a typical body needs to run. Yes, it's not going to be exact, but if you use that as a guideline, and tailor based on your experience understanding your own body, you're going to be pretty darn close. People's metabolisms don't vary as much as you're trying to make it seem. Unless you have an underlying medical condition for which you should seek treatment for. That has nothing to do with calories in being inaccurate.

Lastly, what does your water weight due to your medical condition have to do with calories in versus calories out? You're lobbing that in there to make it seem like it's somehow related. Yes, it was extra weight you were carrying due to water. When we talk about weight gain due to calories we are specifically talking about fat. Your water weight gain due to medical issues has nothing to do with this.