Are These Hormones Causing You to Gain Weight?

If you're like most Americans over 50, your waistline is six cm larger than it was in your 20s or 30s, and your scale numbers reflect that. The reasons are obvious: genetic predisposition, supersized portions, too much sitting and insufficient movement. However, another notion circulating in the weight-loss community is hormone imbalance.

First, a little Hormones 101 to see if your hormones are working in tandem with your fat cells. These chemical messengers, which are produced by our bodies, have a vast range of functions, including regulating growth, growing sex organs, controlling blood sugar levels, and, yes, impacting body weight, body fat, and muscle mass.

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Hormones produced by the thyroid

What they do: The thyroid gland, located at the front of your neck, produces hormones that regulate everything from fetal growth to heart rate and body temperature to metabolic rate (the rate at which you burn calories).

If you have hyperthyroidism, like 1.2 percent of Americans, your thyroid gland is overactive, secreting too much hormone, which speeds up your metabolism and causes you to lose weight quickly. While this may appear to be a good thing, it puts your heart, bones, and eyes in jeopardy.

Hypothyroidism affects around 5% of Americans (with higher incidence among those aged 60 and up). Hypothyroidism is characterized by an underactive thyroid gland that produces insufficient hormone, reducing metabolic rate.

Estrogen

What it does is this: The hormone regulates fertility and induces puberty in females, making it one of the most important sex hormones for women. Estrogen also regulates mood and protects the cardiovascular system and bones.

Estrogen may change your shape, causing fat to be pushed to your hips and thighs. "That's why, as estrogen levels decline with menopause, women tend to develop more 'visceral' fat in the abdomen.

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Testosterone

What it does: It is the primary sex hormone in males, commencing puberty and fertility while also regulating body composition and libido. It also has an impact on mood, cardiovascular health, and other factors.

Testosterone promotes muscular growth while also reducing body fat. This hormone naturally drops 5 to 10% per decade starting in a man's 20s and 30s. Is this weight loss causing you to gain weight? “ Perhaps a smidgeon, but the evidence isn't conclusive. However, males with hypogonadism, which is characterized by a low testosterone level in men with symptoms such as low libido, depression, or indicators such as anemia or osteoporosis, have a smaller percentage of muscle and a higher percentage of fat, particularly visceral fat.

Leptin

Leptin is derived from the Greek word leptin, which means "thin," because growing levels of this hormone tell the body to lose weight. Leptin is also involved in the regulation of blood sugar, blood pressure, and fertility.

Leptin is a signaling mechanism that is released by fat cells and alerts the brain to changes in body fat. Leptin levels grow as you gain weight, suppressing your hunger while increasing your metabolic rate, which helps you lose weight. However, in obese persons, signaling is disrupted for unknown reasons.

When you lose weight, your leptin levels plummet.

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This sends a hunger signal to the brain, which causes the metabolic rate to slow and the appetite to grow.

Ghrelin

What it entails: Ghrelin, sometimes known as the "hunger hormone," is produced by the stomach when you haven't eaten in a while and travels up to the brain, whetting your desire. It also aids in the movement of food through the digestive tract and is implicated in the cardiovascular, immunological, and mental health systems.

The body weight connection: When people lose weight, their leptin levels drop, but their ghrelin levels rise, making weight reduction even more difficult.

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Insulin

This hormone, which is released by your pancreas in response to a spike in blood sugar (glucose) after eating, aids in the removal of excess glucose from muscle and fat cells. Glucose is either burnt as fuel or stored as glycogen in muscle. It can be burnt or turned to fat in fat cells.

The theory behind Atkins, Keto, and every other low-carb diet is that eating carbohydrates elevates insulin levels, which signals the body to store fat. You'll burn more body fat if you cut off the carbs.

Insulin, on the other hand, can be an issue if you have too much visceral fat. This fat can release inflammatory chemicals, reducing your body's insulin sensitivity. Insulin resistance, in turn, appears to lead to an increase in fat storage, creating a vicious cycle.

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Cortisol

It's known as the "stress hormone" because its levels rise in response to stress, but it also has immune system and other benefits.

Obesity and cortisol levels: Obese people, on average, have greater cortisol levels than non-obese people. A larger waistline is also connected to the hormone. Meanwhile, persons who are under chronic stress — the kind that lasts weeks or months — have greater cortisol levels. It's natural to jump to the conclusion that persistent stress elevates cortisol levels, which causes visceral fat to accumulate.

To find out more on how to control these hormone levels click now. It is possible to help control these levels and give you fighting chance on losing weight if you're struggling.