As a freelancer and a part-time student it would be very easy for me to morph into a couch potato. But I know only too well, that an expanding waistline is unlikely to bring more on-screen work, just additional woes about health issues and lots of ribbing from friends and family. So, three times a week, I cart myself off to the gym to justify eating man-sized meal portions and quaffing a bottle of wine most days .
I recently read about a young male living in the States called Shiva. Unlike me, he’s had little control over what he’s become. He spends all day on his own, lazing around, eating rich, fatty foods and slurping carbonated drinks. He’s twice the size that he should be for his age and his rotund belly hangs well below his waistline.
Shiva is a monkey. He’s one of 4,000 Rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta)being studied by scientists at Oregon National Primate Center. He’s been fattened up to help study the twin human epidemics of obesity and diabetes. There are about 150 monkeys that are overweight – some receive daily insulin shots to treat diabetes; others have clogged arteries. And sadly one monkey died of a heart attack a few years ago at a fairly young age.
Fat Albert, one of the world's heaviest Rhesus monkeys at 70lbs
I’m all for scientific research to help tackle these human ailments, but this kind of research does leave me sitting on the fence. My heart very much goes out to the primates who are forced to live unpleasant lives at our expense. This picture of Fat Albert is quite disturbing and I’d be surprised if it didn’t have an impact on each and every one of you looking at it.
Experts say, they use monkeys because they resemble humans much more than laboratory rats do, not only physiologically but in some of their feeding habits. They tend to eat when bored, even when they’re not really hungry. And unlike people who always try to pretend their daily calorie intake was less than it was, a caged monkey’s food is much easier for researchers to count and control.
Dr Kevin L. Grove, who is a neuroscientist and directs the obese resource centre in Oregon says: “The monkey’s daily diet consists of dried chow pellets, with about one-third of the calories come from fat, similar to a typical American diet, though the diet also contains adequate protein and nutrients.”
The research has produced some positive results. An anti-appetite drug was tested which allowed the monkeys to lose 13 percent of their body weight in a few weeks with no apparent heart problems. Others have been tested with gastric bypass surgery and forced dieting.
Animal rights groups have been tirelessly campaigning against this type of research. They say primate studies subject animals to needless suffering, like the stress of being caged. Two activists got jobs at this particular centre in the last decade and presented evidence of what they said were mistreated and unhealthy monkeys.
Shiva at the Oregon National Primate Center, he's twice his normal body weight
Jim Newman, a spokesman for the primate centre said the accusations were “unfounded” and that after both instances, inspectors from the Department of Agriculture found “no violations of rules”.
Monkey studies can cost up to several million pounds. The animals are so precious that only a small number can be used. But there are ethical reviews before a study can begin. It does make you think twice though, those breakthrough cures, have come at a quite a moral price tag.
If more people exercised and ate sensibly maybe monkeys like Fat Albert and Shiva wouldn’t have to be our genuine pigs.
whogivesamonkeys 
Jack
February 24, 2011
I think the point of the study with Fat Albert and Shiva was to show that these monkeys had a controlled eating plan. What was that plan? It was verbatim the American Heart Association diet. Yes, the large amounts of grain and fruits. Both very high in sugar and carbohydrates.
This generation has been taught over and over that we need to eat less and exercise more. This is a myth! These is lots of evidence in data collected that shows that we get basically get fat because of the increase in the hormone insulin. Insulin is spiked when we eat high carb and sugar products. This spike in insulin makes the fat go into storage mode and it is not then used as energy.
One study to check out is on the Pima people. There is a picture of “Fat Louisa” as she was named. These people had VERY hard lives and didn’t have much food. The food they had at the time this photo was taken was heavy carb – corn and grains. Yet she is very obese. The point of this post is to just ask the reader to research this for themselves. Do the research and find out for yourself. A good book to check out is “Why We Get Fat and What To Do About It” by Taubes. If you really want to lose weight cut way down on the carbs (less that 20g per day) and cut out sugar. (Splenda is fine) Completely avoid like the plague, liquid carbs such as soda, coffee, beer. We could learn a lot from the studies of these monkeys. There is something severly out of whack with the traditional: eat less, exercise more models.
Best of luck to all who want to know what’s really going on.
urbanprimate
February 24, 2011
Thanks very much for your comments. I agree, a lot can be learnt from these studies, but I can’t help but feel affected by the images of these primates. I’m not saying these primates are fed a daily diet of constant junk food, regardless ff they are on the American Heart Association diet or not, the point is they are fed foods they wouldn’t ordinarily eat in the wild. That in itself is bound to affect their metabolism; size and bodily functions. In their natural habitat these primates would not have such a high intake of sugar or carbs consistently, plus they would have to forage for these foods, hence burning off calories. I do think people need to start taking more responsibility for their actions and the way people eat is very lazy and their attitudes towards long-term health problems are also lazy. Most people want a quick fix. At the end of the day a balanced health diet with regular exercise is the obvious option. It does annoy me that scientists feel they can justify finding an easy solution for human vanity at the expense of animal welfare.