Go to Part I of this article

The energy needs of the brain

In Part I of our article on intense mental activity and fat accumulation we described how the brain is an energy-hungry organ that consumes more than one-fifth of our daily calorie allowance. In this second part of our article we are describing how intense thinking indirectly leads to futher calorie burning and we are examining if it can also prevent or reduce cellulite.

Intense thinking and metabolism

On the other hand, intense thinking will almost definitely lead to increased noradrenaline/dopamine release and consequent nervous alertness/tension, which will in turn increase the overall whole-body metabolism and the consumption of even more calories. At the moment no studies exist to quantify the effect of intense thinking on the overall increase of metabolic rate, so this information can only be speculative, but the truth is that people who think a lot (or worry a lot!) tend to generally be slimmer than people who don't need to think very hard or people who ...“take it easy”. Of course, a whole lot of other factors are involved in staying slim/getting fat, including diet, exercise, general daily physical activity and genetic predisposition, but generally speaking intense thinking most probably helps us stay a bit thinner.

However, calorie burning in the brain, and the consequent increased metabolic rate, do not lead to the increased muscle mass that exercise offers (muscle consumes a high amount of energy, even when at rest), neither it improves aerobic capacity or overall health (although it obviously does improve mental ability).

Intense mental effort and cellulite

Of course, intense thinking does not protect from cellulite, even though it may lead to a moderate decrease in fat accumulation, a major component of cellulite. This is because when we think intensely (i.e. studying, working in front of the computer for hours on end etc.) we tend to sit on our bums, thereby minimising circulation and mechanical stimulation in the areas most prone to developing cellulite: the buttocks and the back of the thighs! Poor circulation leads to water retention (an important aspect of cellulite), while lack of mechanical stimulation leads to lack of skin firmness and overall skin tissue weakness/flabbiness (another important cause of cellulite). Therefore, we can safely conclude that studying/intense mental work does increase cellulite even though it most probably moderately boosts energy consumption.

In fact, this conclusion agrees to loads of anecdotal evidence, which shows that women with sedentary occupations that involve hard thinking (i.e. researchers, students, traders, bankers etc.) may sometimes be slim, but almost always suffer from loose skin and cellulite...

As a practical note...

...if you do have to be stuck in front of your computer for hours on end, do not expect your hard brain's work to keep your skin in good shape, even if you don’t snack on sweets and other “brain candy”. Instead, try to undo the damage that sitting on your bum causes to your bum, by doing at least 30’ of exercise a day (power plate is the best for this specific purpose), daily applying a quality anti-cellulite cream and, if you can afford it, try to regularly receive a good cellulite treatment that will provide some much needed mechanical stimulation to the skin of your bum and thighs.

Go to Part I of this article