Do you feel like you’re way too young to be gaining weight so rapidly? After all, serious weight gain isn’t supposed to happen until you’re in your late 20s…right?
Well, according to a recent study from Michigan State University, you’re really not crazy to think your sudden weight gain is a little abnormal.
In fact, if you’re starting to feel like your jeans get a little tighter every time you eat a bowl of ice cream, the problem might actually stem from your childhood.
The study, which was published in the journal Social Science and Medicine, found that childhood stress had a huge impact on weight gain in adult women.
The researchers claim that the lasting impact of childhood stress is actually so great that it even outweighs adult stress.
To start their study, the researchers took a look at the numbers from the Americans' Changing Lives survey, which talked to 3,617 people over a 15-year period.
What they discovered was that the women who experienced serious stress before the age of 16 (financial struggles, divorced parents, abuse, etc.) gained weight much faster as adults than women who weren’t subjected to stress in their early teen years. ##MN_RESP##
While the researchers admitted that genetics still play a huge role in adult weight gain, they also believe that the high amount of childhood stress may lead to poor eating habits and struggles with exercise early on.
Surprisingly, the men in this study did not have the same connection between weight gain and childhood stress, according to the researchers.
This may be because women are more prone to depression than men as adults, which can lead to serious binge eating habits, the researchers said.
To conclude this shocking study, the researchers say that this is just another reason for public health workers to be more present during childhood.
Were you surprised by this study? Tell us in the comments!
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