Argument Breakdown:- Premise 1: Very overweight people tend to have relatively low metabolic rates.
- Premise 2: When these people lose weight primarily through dieting, their metabolism generally remains unchanged.
- Premise 3: They burn fewer calories at the new weight compared to people whose normal weight is at that level.
Conclusion: These newly thin persons will ultimately regain weight until their body size matches their metabolic rate again.
Assumption in Choice (A):Quote:
Relatively few very overweight people who have dieted down to a new weight tend to continue to consume substantially fewer calories than do people whose normal weight is at that level.
Simplified Explanation and Example:
To understand (A), let's consider an example involving two people:
Alice: Normally weighs 150 pounds.
Bob: Was very overweight at 200 pounds and dieted down to 150 pounds.
Metabolism:Alice, with a naturally stable weight of 150 pounds, has a metabolic rate that matches her weight. She burns a certain number of calories per day, say 2000 calories.
Bob, although now at 150 pounds, still has the low metabolic rate he had when he was 200 pounds. He only burns, say, 1500 calories per day.
Caloric Intake:
Alice can maintain her 150 pounds by consuming around 2000 calories per day.
Bob, to maintain his new weight of 150 pounds, would need to consume around 1500 calories per day because of his lower metabolic rate.
Assumption in Action:Choice (A) Assumption: Suggests that Bob (and other very overweight people who have dieted down) will not continue to consume only 1500 calories per day (which is what they need to maintain their new weight). Instead, they might start consuming more calories again, similar to what people like Alice consume (2000 calories per day).
Example:If Bob starts eating 2000 calories per day, the same as Alice:
Alice maintains her weight at 150 pounds because her metabolic rate supports it.
Bob, with a lower metabolic rate (burning only 1500 calories per day), will start gaining weight again because he is consuming more calories than he is burning.
Thus, choice (A) is saying that if very overweight people who have dieted down do not continue to eat fewer calories than people whose normal weight is at that level, they will regain weight. This supports the argument's conclusion that newly thin persons will regain weight to match their metabolic rate.