Obesity is a complex and often misunderstood disease.
Typically, you might think that the key to losing weight is by following the motto, "calories in and calories out," and the solution to end the obesity epidemic is to strengthen your willpower and simply say no to tempting foods, as well as eat way less than usual.
However, that's not as easy and simple as it sounds. Data suggests that Americans are more obese than ever, even though there's been improvements within nutrition organizations and the food industry.
Some people are just always hungry. Why is that?
Recent research and theories aren't focusing on the issue of overeating, but rather how calories are distributed in your body. The more calories that you consume, the more are stored away in your fat tissue, leaving fewer calories within your bloodstream and leaving your body unsatisfied.
Is there a way you can prevent this from happening?
David Ludwig, MD, PhD, shares his research on why you're always hungry, as well as if there's a way to prevent your appetite from getting out of control.
Selected Podcast
Why Are You Always Hungry?
Featuring:
David S. Ludwig, MD, PhD, is a practicing endocrinologist and researcher at Boston Children's Hospital. He holds the rank of Professor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School and Professor of Nutrition at Harvard School of Public Health.
Dr Ludwig is Founding Director of the Optimal Weight for Life (OWL) program at Children's Hospital, one of the country's oldest and largest multidisciplinary clinics for the care of overweight children.
He also directs the New Balance Foundation Obesity Prevention Center at Children's Hospital. His research focuses on the effects of diet on hormones, metabolism and body weight. In particular, he developed a novel "low glycemic load" diet (i.e., one that decreases the surge in blood sugar after meals) for the treatment of obesity and prevention of type-2 diabetes and heart disease.
In addition, he conducted some of the original studies linking sugar-sweetened beverages and fast food to obesity. Described as an "obesity warrior" by Time Magazine, Dr. Ludwig has fought for fundamental policy changes to restrict food advertising directed at young children, improve quality of school nutrition programs and increase insurance reimbursement for obesity prevention and treatment programs.
Dr. Ludwig is a fellow of The Obesity Society and recipient of the E.V. McCollum Award (2008) of the American Society for Nutrition. He is Principal Investigator on numerous grants from the National Institutes of Health, has published over 150 scientific articles, and serves as Contributing Writer for JAMA. Dr. Ludwig is author of a book on childhood obesity for parents, Ending the Food Fight: Guide Your Child to a Healthy Weight in a Fast Food/Fake Food World (Houghton Mifflin, 2007).
His latest book, for a general audience, is entitled Always Hungry? Conquer Cravings, Retrain Your Fat Cells, and Lose Weight Permanently (Grand Central Publishing, January 2016). He appears frequently in national print and broadcast media.
David Ludwig, MD, PhD
David S. Ludwig, MD, PhD, is a practicing endocrinologist and researcher at Boston Children's Hospital. He holds the rank of Professor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School and Professor of Nutrition at Harvard School of Public Health.Dr Ludwig is Founding Director of the Optimal Weight for Life (OWL) program at Children's Hospital, one of the country's oldest and largest multidisciplinary clinics for the care of overweight children.
He also directs the New Balance Foundation Obesity Prevention Center at Children's Hospital. His research focuses on the effects of diet on hormones, metabolism and body weight. In particular, he developed a novel "low glycemic load" diet (i.e., one that decreases the surge in blood sugar after meals) for the treatment of obesity and prevention of type-2 diabetes and heart disease.
In addition, he conducted some of the original studies linking sugar-sweetened beverages and fast food to obesity. Described as an "obesity warrior" by Time Magazine, Dr. Ludwig has fought for fundamental policy changes to restrict food advertising directed at young children, improve quality of school nutrition programs and increase insurance reimbursement for obesity prevention and treatment programs.
Dr. Ludwig is a fellow of The Obesity Society and recipient of the E.V. McCollum Award (2008) of the American Society for Nutrition. He is Principal Investigator on numerous grants from the National Institutes of Health, has published over 150 scientific articles, and serves as Contributing Writer for JAMA. Dr. Ludwig is author of a book on childhood obesity for parents, Ending the Food Fight: Guide Your Child to a Healthy Weight in a Fast Food/Fake Food World (Houghton Mifflin, 2007).
His latest book, for a general audience, is entitled Always Hungry? Conquer Cravings, Retrain Your Fat Cells, and Lose Weight Permanently (Grand Central Publishing, January 2016). He appears frequently in national print and broadcast media.