FREE NEJM E-TOC    HOME   |   SUBSCRIBE   |   CURRENT ISSUE   |   PAST ISSUES   |   COLLECTIONS   |   Search Term  Advanced Search

Sign in | Get NEJM's E-Mail Table of Contents — Free | Subscribe

Previous Volume 332:673-674 March 9, 1995 Number 10 Next

	Since this article has no abstract, we have provided an extract of the first 100 words of the full text and any section headings.

	Full Text Purchase this article Add to Personal Archive Add to Citation Manager Notify a Friend E-mail When Cited PubMed Citation

The folk belief that overeating causes obesity has influenced clinical thinking with remarkable tenacity, despite two fatal flaws in the theory. First, the proposition is logically vacant, inasmuch as the definition of overeating is circular; only if one is fat can one be said to have overeaten. Second, whenever the proposition has been reframed so as to have meaning and then tested in a well-designed experiment, eating behavior has appeared to be the dependent variable, rather than the independent variable.

The best evidence, derived mostly from studies in animals but increasingly confirmed by difficult experiments in humans (such as that . . . [Full Text of this Article]

References

This article has been cited by other articles:

• MacLean, P. S., Higgins, J. A., Johnson, G. C., Fleming-Elder, B. K., Donahoo, W. T., Melanson, E. L., Hill, J. O. (2004). Enhanced metabolic efficiency contributes to weight regain after weight loss in obesity-prone rats. Am. J. Physiol. Regul. Integr. Comp. Physiol. 287: R1306-R1315 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• MacLean, P. S., Higgins, J. A., Johnson, G. C., Fleming-Elder, B. K., Peters, J. C., Hill, J. O. (2004). Metabolic adjustments with the development, treatment, and recurrence of obesity in obesity-prone rats. Am. J. Physiol. Regul. Integr. Comp. Physiol. 287: R288-R297 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Weinsier, R. L, Nagy, T. R, Hunter, G. R, Darnell, B. E, Hensrud, D. D, Weiss, H. L (2000). Do adaptive changes in metabolic rate favor weight regain in weight-reduced individuals? An examination of the set-point theory. Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 72: 1088-1094 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Large, V., Reynisdottir, S., Langin, D., Fredby, K., Klannemark, M., Holm, C., Arner, P. (1999). Decreased expression and function of adipocyte hormone-sensitive lipase in subcutaneous fat cells of obese subjects. J. Lipid Res. 40: 2059-2066 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Anderson, R. M., Brackenridge, B. P. (1999). Polar Bears in the Jungle: Reflections on Obesity and Overeating. The Diabetes Educator 25: 521-526  
• Kassirer, J. P., Angell, M. (1998). Losing Weight -- An Ill-Fated New Year's Resolution. NEJM 338: 52-54 [Full Text]