No more thermoneutrality for me!

Read this and rejoice in the heat:

Experts gathered round for a little discussion on the causes underlying the obesity epidemic at a workshop held in Washington, DC this past March. While the main focus of the meeting was the association between weight and sleep ("Sleep loss and obesity may be interacting epidemics"!), Dr. David Allison of the University of Alabama's clinical nutrition center had a few thoughts on temperature and obesity.

He noted that the availability of home heating and air conditioning in the past few decades has reduced human energy expenditure. Prolonged exposure to cold is known to improve insulin sensitivity, and both humans and animals eat less when too hot or too cold. Conversely, we all eat more in thermoneutral zones.

Please don't hate me because I don't have air-conditioning.