There are all kinds of reasons for having difficulties to lose weight – from metabolism, to lifestyle habits, dietary, types of exercise, health issues.
We investigate and list out the 3 reasons you’re not losing weight.
1. Gut Health
Trillions of bacteria and microorganisms live on your skin and there are hundreds of different types of bacteria in your intestines. While some may cause disease, most of them carry out essential tasks to keep you healthy.
Gut bacteria produce certain vitamins, including vitamin K, and communicate with your immune system to help your body fight off infection. However, since your gut bacteria line your intestines, they come into contact with the food you eat. This may affect what nutrients you absorb and how energy is stored in your body.
There are studies shown that if the gut bacteria from obese people are put into mice, the mice gain weight. This suggests that gut bacteria could affect weight This may be due to the effect of the type and composition of different bacteria on the digestion of different foods.
Studies have shown that prebiotics and probiotics can have a positive impact on weight loss. Probiotics may also inhibit fat accumulation, reduce inflammation and insulin resistance.
Some prebiotics are thought to increase the density of cells that produce the appetite suppressing hormone and some studies have shown high fat diet-induced leptin resistance is improved by a single dose of prebiotic treatment.
In a nutshell, your gut bacteria may influence weight loss at a micro-molecular level that affects gut inflammation, insulin resistance, leptin resistance, appetite suppression amongst others. To counter this problem, it is important to begin by increasing probiotics and prebiotics by focusing on fruits and vegetable in your diet.
2. Genetics
There are more than 400 different genes that have been implicated in the causes of overweight or obesity, although only a few appear to be major factors. Genes contribute to the causes of obesity in many ways, by affecting appetite, satiety, metabolism, food cravings, body-fat distribution, and the tendency to use eating as a way to cope with stress.
The strength of the genetic influence on weight disorders varies. Having a rough idea of how large a role genes play in your weight may be helpful in terms of treating your weight problems.
Here are tell-tale signs to show how much genetics affect weight gain
You have been overweight for a long time in your life.
If one or both of your parents or several other blood relatives are significantly overweight, your likelihood of developing obesity is increased. This can also me manifested when you find difficulty to lose weight even when you increase your physical activities and stick to a low-calorie diet.
However, if you have the following characteristics, genes might not affect:
You are strongly influenced by the availability of food.
You are moderately overweight, but you can lose weight when you follow a reasonable diet and exercise program.
You regain lost weight during the holiday season, after changing your eating or exercise habits, or at times when you experience psychological or social problems. These circumstances suggest that you can lose weight with hard work and determination.
3. Medicines
If you are taking medications such as antidepressants, oral steroids, and some hypertension drugs, it might be the cause for your weight gain. Some medicines might stimulate your appetite. This causes you to eat more and gain extra weight. Some medicines might affect your body’s metabolism.
This causes your body to burn calories at a slower rate. Some medicines might cause you to retain water. This makes you weigh more even if you don’t put on extra fat. Other medicines might affect how your body stores and absorbs sugars and other nutrients.
If a medicine causes you to be tired, you might be less likely to exercise. This can cause you to gain weight.
Medicines that may cause weight gain include:
- Medicines for diabetes, such as insulin, thiazolidinediones, and sulfonylureas
- Antipsychotic medicines such as haloperidol, clozapine, risperidone, olanzapine, quetiapine, and lithium
- Antidepressant medicines like amitriptyline, imipramine, paroxetine, escitalopram, citalopram, mirtazapine, and sertraline
- Epilepsy medicines like valproate, divalproex, carbamazepine, and gabapentin
- Steroid and hormone medicines like prednisone or birth control pills
- Blood pressure-reducing medicines like beta-blockers such as propranolol and metoprolol
It is also important to note that not all medicines of these types cause weight gain. For example, the diabetes medicine metformin might make you lose weight instead of gain it. Topiramate (a medicine used for seizures and migraines) also can help a person lose weight.
Conclusion
It can be tough battling with these factors to lose weight, but it can be solved. At M-Aesthetic Clinic, we offer the latest body slimming and firming treatment – TruSculpt iD which allows you to personalise and target problematic areas.
Dr Ho Rui Ming recognises that everyone is different and hence customises treatment plan to suit everyone.
For more info on TruSculpt ID – click here to read more.
If you would like to find out more, do enquire within or send us a message.
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