Weight Loss Leads to Strong Increase in Appetite

Study provided clues of how strongly appetite counters weight loss.

Analysis of a trial that used the drug canagliflozin found that as people lost weight, their appetite increased proportionately, leading to consumption of more calories and weight loss plateau (leveling off). The findings provide the first measurement in people of how strongly appetite counters weight loss as part of the body’s feedback control system regulating weight. Results were published in Obesity during Obesity Week 2016 (Oct. 31-Nov. 4).

A team led by NIDDK analyzed data from a year-long, placebo-controlled, double-blind trial in people with type 2 diabetes who could eat and drink without restriction. Of the 242 participants, 153 received canagliflozin, a drug that caused a substantial increase in the amount of glucose excreted in their urine. Those people were not directly aware of that calorie loss, which caused a gradual decrease in weight averaging about 8 pounds.

The team used a validated math model to calculate the changes in the amount of calories consumed during the study. They found no long-term calorie intake changes in the 89 people who got a placebo. However, for every pound of lost weight, the people treated with canagliflozin consumed about 50 calories per day more than they were eating before the study. This increase in appetite and calorie intake led to slowing of weight loss after about 6 months.