Question

Severe dieting results in both the reduction of fat stores and the loss of muscle mass. From your understanding of Biochemical pathways, explain how this observation occur?

Answer 1

People who used severe diets for weight loss, did decrease their body weight overall. But, they also reduced their lean muscle mass . If the state of starvation is continued chronically, organ size and lean muscle mass are both decreased.

Weight loss through diets results in individuals to lose considerable amounts of lean muscle mass and Lean Body Mass, which includes water, organs, bones, etc. Decreasing the mass of your bones is problematic, as that in turn decreases bone density and can make you more susceptible to injury. Conversely, increase in Lean Body Mass increases bone strength and density, a common problem for many people as they age.

This give rise to the discussion and comprehension of an key topic- metabolism. Chronic starvation leads to alterations in metabolism. Both metabolism and resting metabolic rate are directly connected to Lean Body Mass. A person having greater body mass will need more energy to function day by day,and thus will have a bigger basal metabolic rate (BMR). When weight decreases, so does BMR. It means that there’s a specific number of calories necessary to keep up your lean mass. If you go below this, your body will be imposed to break down these muscle in order to generate energy.

Starvation diets have far-reaching negative consequence on the body. Starving to lose weight changes the metabolism, reduces lean muscle, bone density, and strength.