Weight Loss with Sohu12

When you consider that this century has been called the “age of chemistry,” it’s no wonder that alarmists shout there is no longer any available pristine air to breathe or water to drink.

Man-made chemical compounds have changed our lives. Pesticides on almost all of our foods, processing of the foods themselves, thousands of toxins in our drinking water supply, to the use of deodorants, colognes, glue, paint, carpet, auto exhaust, detergents and fabric softeners, are on our bodies 24 hours a day. And it’s these same chemicals found in our food and air that prevent us from losing unwanted weight. Yes, they stifle metabolism.

To satisfy the world’s demand for these products, the annual global production of chemicals, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), amounts to about $1.5 trillion. WHO reports that some 100,000 chemicals are now on the market and that from 1,000 to 2,000 new ones are added each year.

Often these chemicals are wrongly declared safe when first released into our environment, as in the case of DDT. Scientists later learned that DDT tends to remain in organisms a long time, which is also the case with other potential toxins. DDT itself, is banned or severely restricted in over 40 countries to date because of its extremely harmful composition and effects.

Chemicals that Mimic Hormones

Hormones are important chemical messengers in the body. They travel through our bloodstream to other parts of our body, where they either stimulate or suppress a certain function, such as body growth or reproductive cycles. Interestingly, a recent press release by the WHO said that “a rapidly growing body of scientific evidence” indicates that certain synthetic chemicals, when taken into the body, interfere with hormones by either imitating them in a harmful way or blocking them.

The chemicals involved include PCBs, dioxins, furans, and some pesticides, including DDT residues. Called endocrine disrupters, these chemicals have the potential to disrupt the normal workings of the body’s endocrine system, the source of hormones.

One hormone that these chemicals mimic is the female sex hormone estrogen. A study published in the medical journal Pediatrics suggests that an increased prevalence of early puberty among many girls could be linked to estrogen-containing hair products as well as environmental chemicals that mimic estrogen.

Exposing a male to certain chemicals at a critical time in his development can also have adverse effects. “Experiments have shown,” says a report in Discover magazine, “that PCBs applied at just the right time during development can change male turtles and alligators into females or ‘intersex’ individuals.”

In humans, children are the ones who are affected the most by chemicals that mimic hormones. Children born to women who ingested PCB-contaminated rice oil in Japan some years ago “suffered from physical and mental developmental delays, behavioral problems including hypoactivity and hyperactivity, abnormally small penises, and IQ scores five points below average,” Discover magazine reports. Tests performed on children exposed to a high level of PCBs in the Netherlands and in North America revealed similar adverse effects upon their physical and mental development.

Also linked to these chemicals, reports WHO, may be the increase in “hormonally sensitive” cancers among men and women, such as breast, testicular, and prostate cancer. In addition, in a number of countries, the evidently ongoing decrease in the average sperm count in men, as well as the quality of the sperm, may be linked to the increase in the use of chemicals. In some lands, the average sperm count has almost halved in 50 years.

It’s no wonder that morticians are now noted as using less embalming fluid as was common one hundred years ago (some sources list 30% less). Could it be that we’ve been slowly embalming ourselves with artificial preservatives over the period of our life-span?

That’s why introducing organic foods into our diets and eliminating all packaged foods that our ancestors would not have had available, can in themselves result in easier weight control and better health as a whole.

Any weight management program whether you are aware of it or not, will need to trigger the basic hormones that greatly affect our metabolism. This data can be found in scattered bits and pieces and sometimes the relationships are not explained too clearly. I will try to offer a brief but clear explanation of the hormones involved in weight loss as well as weight gain.

One of the primary hormones that affect weight management is insulin. Insulin is a blood sugar regulator. High carbohydrate intake leads to higher blood sugar levels. This leads to an increase of insulin output by the body. Insulin production is the body’s natural response to excessively high sugar levels in the blood. If that sugar is not getting converted into energy fast enough to maintain safe levels in the blood, insulin will resort to an alternate to that conversion to energy. This results in the conversion of that blood sugar into fat that will be stored by the body.

The term lipogenic refers to that quality of being fat producing. In addition to insulin being lipogenic, it also bears another quality that means bad news to weight loss programs. Insulin is also antilipolytic. This simply means that it naturally works to fight against the breakdown of fat. As you now see, a diet that stimulates high insulin output will certainly be encouraging natural body responses that are counter productive to your goal of losing weight.

When the body is stressed due to a variety of reasons, insulin production also increases in order to stimulate the production of cortisol, our stress hormone. The body then responds to high cortisol by lowering the levels of the hormone dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA). This hormone is very influential in the production of muscle. Producing more muscle than fat is our ultimate goal.

Chronic stress stimulates fat cells into storing fat. Fat cells located in the abdominal wall, characteristically possess more cortisol receptors on their cell membranes. So in turn, stress will encourage these cells to retain more fat.

Leptin is produced by adipose tissue and leptin binds to nucleus cells of the hypothalamus, a region of the brain known as the “satiety center.” Binding of leptin to this nucleus tells the brain that the body has had enough to eat thus providing the sensation of satiety. In a small number of humans, homozygous mutations for the leptin gene are present that stimulate a constant demand for food. This typically leads to severe obesity. Unfortunately this condition often compounds itself. As the body produces greater and greater quantities of leptin to fulfill the requirements of the process it can also cause higher tolerances and reduced efficiency. Although complete manipulation of this hormone has yet to be accomplished, there have been some short term benefits experienced by the administration of recombinant human leptin by way of injection.

The hormone serotonin, a neurotransmitter in the brain made from the amino acids found in proteins. Like leptin, it also sends messages that body is satisfied and that we have eaten sufficient to meet our body’s needs. Low serotonin levels cause depression, obesity, lethargy, and a greater desire for refined carbohydrates. Low levels of serotonin leads to overeating because the brain believes the body is starving. A diet that restricts protein-rich calories can be one reason for low serotonin levels. Some people that produce very high levels of cortisol also tend to experience lower serotonin levels.

Another glandular condition known as hypothyroidism may affect as high as 30 percent of the population. Low thyroid reduces our fat burning rate and causes fatigue, inhibiting energy levels. Your thyroid is small gland at the base of your neck that controls energy flow. A shortage of thyroid hormones makes you sluggish at every level. Slowed digestion causes constipation, sluggish metabolism leads to weight gain and elevated cholesterol levels. The brain also needs thyroid hormones to stimulate the production of hormones like serotonin that we talked about earlier. Hypothyroidism can lead to depression and lethargy and weight gain.

Often forgotten in the discussion of weight loss and hormones, testosterone and estrogens may be forgotten. These are typically male, female hormones. The production of these hormones tends to fall off with age. The male hormone, testosterone stimulates high energy and associated fat burning benefits. On the other hand the female hormone estrogens actually encourage the storage of fat. A decrease in estrogens levels therefore would seem beneficial in your weight loss program. Unfortunately a number of conditions call for the addition of estrogens to ease women through the menopause process. Although beneficial in that affect, it will be counter-productive to weight loss or weight control efforts.

As you can see, a number of hormones play a part in weight control. Some of these hormones interact with each other. Some hormones can be manipulated with drugs or by careful meal planning. Others hormones such as leptin are subject to manipulation. The ultimate solution is a careful selection of food groups and meal planning.

Weight loss supplements may be indicated when the patient is too obese to effectively exercise but is not in a condition that warrants surgery to reduce food consumption. Excess weight may put so much pressure on the joints that normal activity is hampered and the individual is unable to lose weight. This cycle of being unable to move and consequent weight gain can be reduced with the use of weight loss supplements. In case you are suffering from any medical condition related to blood sugar or pressure, your doctor must be informed of medications that you are consuming. These medicines should preferably be used only for a short period till enough weight loss is achieved to allow physical movement. After that, the patient should opt for alternative methods to achieve the targeted weight.

Inhibitors

Weight loss supplements that work as lipase inhibitors act on food and move through the digestive tract at a fast rate. Some patients complain of a lack of fullness despite the quantities that they eat. This disorder can be controlled with the use of medicines like these. This can lead to increased bowel movements that are sometimes uncontrollable. An alternative has the capability to suppress the hormones that signal the feeling of hunger. You must avoid eating unless your body requires it to allow either of these options to work on your system binge eating can lead to distress events if you are using lipase inhibitors. You can run the risk of losing out on vital nutrients on a daily basis with the hormone suppressant. Ensure that you take the advice of a physician in diagnosing whether you need supplements and the food supplements you should take to remain healthy.

Side effects

Weight loss supplements come with side effects. Apart from diarrhoea and nutrition loss, some of them impact the memory of the user. Some medicines have been linked to heart attacks because of the unhealthy increase in energy expenditure that it creates and puts an unnatural strain on vital organs. Muscle cramping, constipation and difficulty in sleeping are some of the common side effects. Though the medication may not show adverse reactions in the short run, the stress on the system due to poor rest and impaired nourishment are likely to have long term effects. These will show up in the form of reduced immunity and longer recovery from minor ailments.

Diagnosis

Your physician will take a complete physical examination and check your vital signs before deciding on the suitable weight loss supplements that you can try. The physician will advise you on the right eating patterns to be followed and ask that you take regular checks of certain vital parameters to rule out the possibility of undesirable effects. Weight loss supplements are to be seen as medicines with chemical formulations that interfere with the body’s natural flow. Long term use is recommended only if you are under regular care of a physician. Though there are many over the counter formulations, do not try them without checking their safety and efficacy with an expert.