Absolutely Stuffed

Who can forget that disgustingly memorable scene in "Monty Python's The Meaning of Life" when Mr. Creosote, a large diner, overdoes it at a restaurant and proceeds to regurgitate his entire meal and then some?

Now that we are in full holiday mode, we are also in full eating mode, and there may be some days where you feel like Mr. Creosote where even a wafer-thin mint could set you over the edge. But it’s hard to say no to Christmas buffets and dinner party appetizers, and when you do, it can feel as if you’re missing out. No matter what time of year it is, it’s important to listen to your stomach. But what if you constantly “hear” it saying “FEED ME”?
 
Those stomach growls and low blood sugar feelings are both evolutionary mechanisms that tell us when to eat. Before the days of supermarkets and food delivery services, survival depended on somehow finding food, and the idea of worrying about losing weight or being thin wasn’t a blip on the radar. Times have changed, of course, and now our food problems are the opposite—there’s too much of it and the Western diet tends to be on the unhealthier side. So, how does the body tell you to stop already?
 
Lest we eat and eat and eat till we pop, the brain and stomach communicate via hormones, one in particular being leptin. The more you weigh, the more leptin you have, which means that it takes fewer calories to feel full the more overweight you are. Whoa! So, why aren’t you losing weight? The brain eventually becomes so used to NOT listening to the leptin signals that it becomes desensitized, and hence, one doesn’t feel full…ever. Unfortunately, this is how “overweight” can quickly upgrade to “obese.”
 
Do you listen to your body when it’s telling you it’s had enough, or is the pleasure of eating yummy food too enjoyable? [The Daily Beast]

—Alicia Kachmar