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3 Hormones That Can Contribute to Weight Gain

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Your diet and lifestyle have a direct relation on your weight. However, your hormone levels also play a role. Executive health physicals include a thorough hormone evaluation, among others, that can determine the root of your weight problems.

Thyroid

Your thyroid hormones affect weight. In fact, thyroid hormones play in cellular activity in almost every cell of your body, including the metabolism of cells. Therefore, when your body doesn’t produce enough or produces too much thyroid hormone, your entire body’s metabolism is thrown off track.

Your thyroid hormone is responsible for making calcitonin, T3, and T4. All of these hormones work together to control your body’s metabolism.

Unfortunately, your thyroid might make too little or too much of these hormones. When your body produces too much of these hormones, you can suffer from hypothyroidism — a condition that can cause you to feel tired and gain weight since your body’s metabolism slows.

On the other hand, hyperthyroidism can cause your body’s metabolism to heighten, which could increase your appetite and cause you to eat more than usual. As a result, you may gain excessive weight.

Insulin  

Your pancreas emits insulin, which is a hormone responsible for transporting glucose to your cells. Your cells use this glucose for energy, or the cells can store it in your fat cells for later use. If you consume processed foods, artificial sweeteners, or partake in unhealthy foods in general, your body can become resistant to insulin. When this happens, your cells prohibit insulin from entering. As a result, the glucose you consume remains in your bloodstream, which can contribute to type II diabetes and weight gain.

Estrogen 

Both men and women produce estrogen. Women tend to produce a higher amount than men. No matter your gender, though, if you produce a higher amount of estrogen than average, the hormone can affect the cells that produce insulin. Your sugar levels will rise, and you may become resistant to insulin.

On the contrary, if you have lower than average estrogen levels, you can gain weight as well. Women tend to feel the wrath of low estrogen levels during and after menopause, particularly. At that time, a woman’s ovarian cells seek out estrogen in other areas of her body, such as her fat cells. Additionally, her body may even start converting any excess energy sources into fat to compensate. Individuals with a low estrogen level may notice that the weight gain is in their lower body rather than all over.

During executive health physicals, a practitioner will evaluate your estrogen levels to determine if you have a health issue related to a hormonal imbalance.

Your body produces and circulates around 50 hormones. Some of these can have a negative impact on your weight. Executive health physicals can determine if you have a hormone issue, which can help you find a course of action to correct the problems that are attributing to your weight gain.

Deepti
the authorDeepti
Deepti is a young and enthusiastic writer who is currently pursuing PGPM from ICFAI Business School. Along with this, she is a freelance content writer who thinks pen has the power to change the world.