Obesity and hormonal imbalance

You must constantly fight your weight while other people seem to stay thin effortlessly. They don’t exercise, they eat anything they want, but they don’t get fat. Hmm, …unfair isn’t it?

Sometimes there are situations where overeating and lack of exercise are not the cause. It is a matter of Hormones.

In recent years, scientists who study body chemistry have discovered several hormones that regulate body weight. Excesses or deficits of hormones can lead to obesity. Here are a few examples:

Thyroid gland makes a hormone called thyroxin, which helps regulate how fast your body burns calories. Thyroid gland, which is shaped like a butterfly and is located right below the Adam’s apple, outputs crucial hormones that essentially regulate the body’s metabolism. People may develop low thyroid function at some point in their lives and that weight gain is a feature of hypothyroid illness.
Since the thyroid produces hormones that manage your metabolism, anything that affects your thyroid will ultimately affect your metabolism.

Stomach secretes ghrelin to stimulate your appetite when your stomach is empty. People with high levels of ghrelin in their bodies will not only feel hungrier than those with low levels, but may burn fat more slowly as well. "It would be interesting to know what would happen if we could block the rise of ghrelin," said Dr. David Cummings, the first author of the new study and an endocrinologist at the University of Washington and the Department of Veterans Affairs in Seattle. "Would it facilitate weight loss, or make it easier to lose weight through dieting or exercise?"

Intestines produce peptide YY to curb your appetite when your intestine has enough food to work on. The gut hormone peptide YY (PYY) is a 36-amino acid peptide that is synthesized and released from specialized enteroendocrine cells called L-cells found predominantly within the distal GI tract. There is increasing evidence that, in addition to regulating food intake, PYY3–36 has additional metabolic beneficial effects on energy expenditure and fuel partitioning.

Fat cells secrete leptin to reduce your appetite when your fat stores have been replenished. Leptin is a hormone secreted by our fat cell, regulates our appetite and metabolism. Leptin is helpful in suppressing the hunger and burning stored fat. Low levels of leptin in the body have been associated with low metabolism and more hunger cravings. The relation between leptin and obesity is clear as low levels of Leptin would mean increased risk of obesity.

You need an approach that doesn’t rely on willpower, because you can’t ignore those instincts. There are dozens of ways to lose weight, but ( as always ) consult to your doctor first.

Image credit : maleandfemalehormones.com