A newly published study suggests a lot of Americans are overweight because of their lousy diets, not their sedentary lifestyles.
The study pulled from years of research across the globe and found that active hunter-gatherers in northern Tanzania expend about the same number of calories as Americans who are tethered to a desk for eight to 10 hours a day.
“Energy expenditure is basically the same across the full spectrum of lifestyle,” said Herman Pontzer, a professor of evolutionary anthropology and global health at Duke University and a senior author on the new study.
At most, the fact that many Americans and other people living in rich, developed countries expend less energy might account for one-tenth of the obesity problem, he said.
While this wasn’t a weight-loss study, the findings suggest that diet should be your focus if your goal is to lose weight.
Dr. Alysia Robichau at Houston Methodist, who wasn’t involved with the study, said the research sheds new light on the “energy in, energy out” perspective of weight loss.
“So, they’re basically saying that it’s not as much calories burned as what we’re putting in diet,” said Robichau, a primary care and sports medicine doctor.
Read the full article on WBFF-TV
July 16, 2025