The carbohydrate-insulin model: a physiological perspective on the pandemic of obesity 

American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, nqab270, https: //doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/nqab270

Commentary

It is generally recognized that obesity is caused by a sedentary lifestyle and a modern diet. However, as guided by the Energy Balance Model (EBM), obesity rates remain at historically high levels despite a continued emphasis on eating less and moving more.

This public health failure may result from a fundamental limitation of EBM itself, which conceptualizes obesity as a disorder of energy balance and rephrases the principles of physics without considering the biological mechanisms that drive weight gain.

Here, an alternative paradigm, the carbohydrate-insulin model (CIM), proposes a reversal of causality.

According to CIM, increased fat deposition in the body due to hormonal responses to a high glycemic load diet promotes a positive energy balance.

CIM then provides a conceptual framework with testable hypotheses on how various modifiable factors affect energy balance and fat accumulation.

Rigorous research is needed to compare the validity of these two models and to generate a new model that best encompasses the evidence.

That's just it, they say.