another weight question

My dh and i were talking about this.Do you think weight is more hereditary or what you eat and your lifestyle?
For dh to loose wieght he has to eat very little , or what he considers very little for him is what one ( myself ) may consider normal.
I am by no means thin and i do have to watch but basicallyi have the same body as my mom and my aunts. Dh has the same body as his moms side which tends to be heavy.
What do you think plays more of a role in being overweight or skinny.

Re: another weight question

I think it's more that people have tendencies, based on heredity. I DEFINITELY have the tendency to be overweight if I don't watch what I eat. Other people don't have this tendency, and so they can eat whatever they want without gaining weight. But at the same time, I can maintain my weight and not be overweight, it just takes a little work. I've done it for 4 years so far after losing 30 lbs.

So I think it is both. While people do have genetic tendencies, I do think it mainly comes down to what you eat (unless of course you have a thyroid problem or are on steroids or other medication that prevents you from losing weight).

Re: another weight question

I think I learned a bad relationship with food from my parents.
Not that I blame them, but my weight gain, when I do gain, is because of poor food choices.

Re: another weight question

Re: another weight question

I think it has a lott o do with heredity. I know that I'm thin b/c no one on either side of my family is overweight, so its just good genes.

and i really don't watch what i eat, i should, but i don't.

Re: another weight question

My mom cooked healthy meals for us while I was growing up and most of my family are at a healthy weight.

I only put on weight after I moved out and started eating badly. In my case, it's totally my fault.

Re: another weight question

Hi - I don't ususally post here, but I read this & have to respond. My family has six kids from a mom who herself & her family is/were slender & a dad who himself & his family was/were heavy. Well, of the six of us, three have weight problems & three do not! We are all very close in age, so we grew up with the same meals, habits, etc.

Just wanted to add that! I don't know the answer but have always wondered, too!

Re: another weight question

Genetics plays a HUGE role in my opinion. But personal choice plays an even bigger one.

My mom was a skinny thing - but then gained a ton of weight in her 30's. Each of my sisters seemed to have experienced the same to varying degrees.

My dad was always muscular. Even as an old man he gained a BIG belly - but it was balanced by huge arms and muscular legs.

My brother is a freak though.. he has always struggled to gain even an ounce. He is skinny as the day is long. And he eats like you wouldn't believe! I WISH I had his problem and he had mine!

But my weight problem - ultimately - comes less from my genes than from my own poor choices.

ETA: My mother and father were very careful about the foods they chose for their children. We grew up eating very healthfully. Maybe TOO healthfully because I would LUNGE for the junk whenever my mom wasn't around to confiscate it!

Message edited 10/30/2007 2:05:31 PM.

Re: another weight question

Body type is hereditary - what you do with it from there is a choice people make.

I think for the majority of people it is what they eat & lifestyle. I believe there are very few people that fall into the hereditary category.

Re: another weight question

I think you inherit your weight from your parents in 2 ways

1) genetics

2) eating habits

Although they did a study on adopted children and found they are more likely to have the body type of their adoptive parents than biologicial, leading me to believe it's more habit.

but of COURSE genetics has a lot to do with it. Everyone's metabolism varies.