Taku wrote:
Researchers have found that when very overweight people, who tend to have relatively low metabolic rates, lose weight primarily through dieting, their metabolism generally remain unchanged. They will thus burn significantly fewer calories at the new weight than do people whose weight is normally at that level. Such newly thin persons will, therefore, ultimately regain weight until their body size again matches their metabolic rate.
The conclusion of the argument above depends on which of the following assumptions?
(A) 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.
(B) The metabolisms of people who are usually not overweight are much more able to vary than the metabolisms of people who have been very overweight.
(C) The amount of calories that a person usually burns in a day is determined more by the amount that is consumed that day than by the current weight of the individual.
(D) Researchers have not yet determined whether the metabolic rates of formerly very overweight individuals can be accelerated by means of chemical agents.
(E) Because of the constancy of their metabolic rates, people who are at their usual weight normally have as much difficulty gaining weight as they do losing it.
Premises:
Overweight people have relatively low metabolic rates (perhaps that is why they are overweight)
When they lose weight through dieting (fewer calories intake)
, their metabolism generally remains unchanged.
So they burn significantly fewer calories at the new weight than do people normally at that level.Conclusion: Such newly thin persons will, therefore, ultimately regain weight until their body size again matches their metabolic rate.There is a "normal calorie intake" and a "reduced calorie intake". A person has a certain "normal calorie intake" and based on their metabolism they have a certain "normal" weight.
When they reduce calories and hence reduce their weight, they get thinner than their "normal weight". The argument tells us that their metabolism does not change. People who are normally at that weight consume normal calories and retain the weight because they have higher metabolism rate.
Hence, it concludes that the previously overweight people they will come back to their original weight. But that will happen only if they start consuming normal calories again. What if they continue to consume fewer calories to match their lower metabolism and maintain the low weight? Then they will not gain the weight back.
Hence, to say that their weight will be back, the assumption is that they will get back to normal calories i.e. few people will continue to consume substantially fewer calories. Note that "few" indicates "almost none".
Answer (A) (C) The amount of calories that a person usually burns in a day is determined more by the amount that is consumed that day than by the current weight of the individual.It is one of those options that are put there to confuse you. It has all the right terms but together they make no sense in the sentence.
As per the argument, the metabolism rate does not change based on weight. Metabolism rate specifies the amount of calories that a person burns in a day. We know that it doesn't depend on the weight of the individual otherwise it would have changed after people reduced their weight. The argument also indicates that it doesn't depend on the number of calories consumed (since when you consume fewer calories and slim down, your metabolism rate still stays the same). So it seems that the metabolism rate is determined by neither of the two things mentioned. So ignore this statement. It may actually somewhat conflict with what the argument implies.
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