Why Aren't Thin People Fat?

I sleep very deeply, but I have a lot of trouble falling asleep.  I am a "night person," usually not sleepy until 1 or 2 in the morning, even when I am very tired.  I think if my body could set it's own schedule, I would be awake for 20 hours then sleep for 12.  I usually feel sufficiently rested and healthy if I'm able to sleep for 7-8 hours a night, but since I have trouble settling down and sleeping before midnight, if I have to get up before 8am, I always feel really tired during the day.  I definitely eat more if I have to get up early, I often have a sugary breakfast to give me an energy boost, and that makes me hungrier at lunchtime.  However, if I feel rested and have time in the morning, then I'm more likely to eat something healthy.  I've heard about the weight/sleep correlation, I definitely think there's something to it.        

I sleep like crap most of the time. I wake up several times/night and remember it in the morning. I can't remember the last time I slept all the way through the night. Some of it's stress. I do find I sleep better when I'm running regularly no matter what else is going on. I often take a while to fall asleep due to overactive brain! I'm sure there's some correlation between metabolism and sleep/lack of sleep....

I tend to sleep pretty well - I get at least 7 hours most nights, going to bed between 11 and 11.30pm and getting up between 7 and 7.30am, although it's always taken me a while to get to sleep at first (usually about 30 minutes or so). I've never been one of those people who can fall asleep 'as soon as my head touches the pillow' . I do sometimes wake up in the night though - often around 2 am or maybe 5 am (sometimes both), usually to go to the bathroom, to have a drink or because I'm cold.

I've always been an early riser and when I was a teenager, I somehow managed to get through my A levels (and get good grades) despite not going to bed until around 1am and then getting up at 7am every day! Not quite sure how I did it back then, since now I need my 7 or 8 hours in order to get through the work day without feeling too knackered .

I am a big girl and I don't have trouble sleeping.  As soon as my head hits the pillow, I am out like a light.  If I lay down horizontally on the sofa, then I can guarantee that I will be taking 40 winks within minutes 

I wake up all sparky the next day.

I fall asleep quickly but I never feel ready to wake up. I sometimes think that if I didn't have to work or look after anyone (or feel guilty about it) I could easily sleep all night and all day, at least for one cycle!

I sleep loads!  I love to have 8-9 every night and I'm very grumpy without it.

Generally, I don't have huge difficulty falling asleep (except I'm very sensitive to noise & light) and I sleep pretty restfully .

I am currently having very severe sleep problems (currently taking meds for it), went through the same thing two years ago, but generally can get by comfortably on about 6 hours sleep a night.

Regarding depression, though, one thing I have noticed is that when fat people are stressed or depressed they gain weight, and when thin people are stressed or depressed they lose weight. I hear fat people talking about how when they are sad or stressed about something they need to eat to feel better; when I'm upset I can't eat -if I try to eat I usually don't digest anything and get a very bad case of diarrhea. If something is really bothering me I focus my attention on thinking about it and trying to resolve it; the last thing on my mind is eating. (I admit that sometimes my thoughts can be obsessive and unproductive, so it's not as though my way of dealing with things is always the right way.)

I remember learning in high school biology that when the "fight or flight" system gets activated, your blood flow gets diverted from your digestive system to the parts of your body that you need for running or fighting, and your digestive system shuts down (maybe why some people sh*t their pants when they get really stressed). So it seems that thin people react to stress in more of a "fight or flight way" (keep your stomach and bowels empty so you can move quickly and immediately - maybe to hunt for food, maybe to escape danger, maybe to fight) while fat people react to stress by preparing for the worst over a long period of time (filling up with food in case there is a famine).

Regarding depression, though, one thing I have noticed is that when fat people are stressed or depressed they gain weight, and when thin people are stressed or depressed they lose weight. I hear fat people talking about how when they are sad or stressed about something they need to eat to feel better; when I'm upset I can't eat

I'm the same. If I'm stressed, depressed or upset, the last thing on my mind is food. In fact, now that I think about it, if I'm in quite a bad emotional state, even thinking of food will make me feel sick. Strange. I'd never thought of it in 'flight or fight' terms before, but it makes a lot of sense.

I think "fight or flight" is misapplied in this context. Usually f&f concept has to do with acute stress and reaction to it -- such as your heart rate going going up when you're startled, dilation of pupils, clenched muscles due to being startled.

Explanation for sweetpeach's observed phenomenon is not nearly as complicated. People who tend to be emotional eaters, will eat when stressed. No evolutionary mystery there: people tend to do things to make themselves feel better when they're feeling bad. If you don't eat, you likely engage in some other comfort behaviour.  Not eating, for one, is a good example of a comfort behaviour.

So the "fat people eat when stressed" phenomenon is more likely to be true in reverse: people who tend to eat when strssed are likely to be emotional eaters. People who are emotional eaters also tend to be overweight. So it's a pretty good guess that people who engage in stress eating will be overweight. Not that people who are fat tend to stress eat.

I think "fight or flight" is misapplied in this context. Usually f&f concept has to do with acute stress and reaction to it -- such as your heart rate going going up when you're startled, dilation of pupils, clenched muscles due to being startled.

Which explains why thin people either forget to eat or feel nauseated by food when they're stressed.

And yes, when I am stressed my heart rate goes up, my muscles get tight and sore, etc.

Anyway you can have an f or f reaction if you are in a situation that can't be avoided by running away or fighting (as is common in civilised society).  Your body doesn't really understand the difference between being chased by a wild animal and learning that you've lost a lot of money in the stock market. The difference being that you can't deal with the loss of money by running away or beating someone up. So the reaction never dissipates and turns into anxiety/depression.


I don't agree that all people naturally do things to make themselves better when they feel bad (engage in comfort behaviour). As I said earlier, when I feel bad I think about why I am feeling bad and try to solve the problem. I think "Something is wrong, I have to do something about it before I do anything else", which is sort of like a fight or flight reaction. If I have a bad day at work I don't go home thinking "I'm going to have an ice cream/glass of wine/listen to some nice music to cheer myself up and take my mind off my problems." I go home thinking "Why is my boss such a c*nt and what am I going to do about it?", and I fidget and pace and talk to myself and whine to my husband until I feel that I've resolved things in my head.

I do things that I enjoy (eat nice food, etc.) when I'm already relaxed and content. If something is bothering me,  I can't enjoy anything until I've dealt with whatever is bothering me. When I'm upset, attempting to do something else to try to feel better just makes me feel like I'm wasting time when I should be dealing with my problem and just makes me feel more agitated and frustrated.

I think there are two problems with our discussion.

1. We're disagreeing on definition of "fight or flight" response. As I know it, it's a purely biological reaction to sudden change in environment. Heart rate elevation in response to hearing a gun shot is a fight or flight response. Overeating due to difficulties with the stock market is not. The wikipedia seems to bear me out, but it's not the last word on evolutionary responses, so I'm willing to concede its interpretation is wrong or incomplete.

2. I have a very negative reaction to sweeping generalizations, especially on topic as sensitive as weight, when they're based on personal observation. In drawing general conclusions, personal observation is frequently meaningless, and on this matter particularly so, since the behaviour about which you're generalizing is more likely to take place out of public view. 


It is clear to me that this particular chain of reasoning evokes strong, and possibly disproportionately negative feelings, therefore it's for the best that I don't further pursue this line of argument with you.

I've not had much to add on this thread lately.  I sleep like crap these days, for a variety of reasons.  But this:

It is clear to me that this particular chain of reasoning evokes strong, and possibly disproportionately negative feelings, therefore it's for the best that I don't further pursue this line of argument with you.

...should be enshrined in UKY lore as much as Mindy's 'ignore button this way', 'report to mod button that way'!!!!  Gosh wouldn't you like to see it used on any number of threads on here sometimes! 

I am definitely a comfort eater - have been since I was, oh, about 3 years old or probably even younger than that.  I agree that, logically, it may be more productive to sort out a reasoned answer to a problem, but it just doesn't always work out that way - not for me anyway.  And some problems it seems like only time can resolve - but food & drink can help in the meantime. 

Yep, I gain weight when I am stressed out or depressed, which then makes me more depressed. I tend to lose weight when I am happier. Guess that makes me an emotional eater, though I wouldn't go so far as to say I am fat, just at the high end of average weight for my height according to the BMI calculator. Occasionally my weight creeps up to a BMI of 26, but I manage to control it fairly well. I sleep pretty well, and like LuckyCuz, once I am remotely horizontal on the sofa, I'm a goner. I need at least 7-8 hours per night to avoid crankiness, and more is just fine with me!

DH is very thin, can't eat much when stressed, and, as his mam says, could sleep on a clothesline. He needs more sleep than I do and takes naps more often, though I suspect he would have more energy if he ate more often through the day and drank more water, since he tends to only eat two big meals and then snack late at night, and drinks coffee most all day.

Not all overweight people are emotional eaters, though. I don't eat any more or less when I'm stressed out or happy. I just eat because I love food. I love thinking about it, shopping for it, cooking it, writing about it, talking about it, taking pictures of it and, of course, eating it.

Not all overweight people are emotional eaters, though. I don't eat any more or less when I'm stressed out or happy. I just eat because I love food. I love thinking about it, shopping for it, cooking it, writing about it, talking about it, taking pictures of it and, of course, eating it.

I feel the same way, which doesn't help the weight control, either! But I tend to eat crappy food when I am upset or depressed, more crisps and chocolate and empty calories foods than usual.