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Maintaining this perspective, however, requires a willful ignorance of the facts. The overwhelming evidence shows that fighting obesity is a multi-faceted problem that can’t be solved only through eating less and exercising more. And it’s not just systemic issues like portion sizes and lifestyle that are conspiring factors. The latest research demonstrates that even our own bodies are working against us.

A new study points to an astonishing consequence of the long-outdated blueprint by which human beings are still constructed. Our ancient ancestors didn’t have a steady supply of food in the cupboard and constant access to the neighbourhood supermarket; they went through periods of feast and famine.

As a result, when they lost a lot of weight over a period of time, their bodies didn’t respond as though this was a healthy outcome. Instead, to correct for the likelihood that it would be a long time before they ate again, their metabolisms automatically slowed down, conserving calories until they built back up to their previous weight. It’s a bit like if there were a program that slowed down your spending when it detected a sudden drop in your bank account.

The very mechanism that saved our ancestors’ lives years ago is killing many of us today. We all know people who have lost large amounts of weight and then put most or all of it back on. How many times have we privately judged them, dismissing the outcome as an erosion of willpower, a return to bad habits, or a natural result of subscribing to unsustainable fad diets?