Many illnesses cause you to gain weight even if you eat healthily and exercise regularly. Kidney and heart diseases cause you to retain water, depression can disrupt the regular circulation of your body, and diabetes exists side-by-side with insulin resistance which makes it close to impossible for your body to digest sugar. However, if you can address these conditions, you can expect your body to get back to normal.
Endocrine disorders are notoriously known to cause unintentional weight gain. It is because the endocrine system manages the body’s digestion and metabolism, allowing your body to use up and discard elements that you ingest. If your endocrine system is out of balance, you can expect poor digestion of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats, making it most likely for you to be vulnerable to illnesses. You also end up being unable to get rid of toxins, leading to an unhealthy accumulation of these toxicities in your body. You may most likely end up overweight, lethargic, insomniac, and sickly.
The most common endocrine disorders are hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism. These pertain to a malfunction of the thyroid gland.
However, there are many diseases that we now know that cause rapid weight gain. Having these conditions can be frustrating, especially if you keep on giving all you can to improve your diet and exercise routine. You might have even signed up for meal subscription services to help you control your calorie intake, and you may most likely have signed up for a gym membership to keep you motivated with exercise.
But no matter what you do, and no matter how many hours you put into improving your weight, you cannot lose stubborn pounds. Do not get disheartened, though, for this extra weight is not a result of your bad eating habits and laziness to exercise. It is due to an endocrine disorder that you may be suffering.
Here are some of the most common endocrine disorders that you must get tested for if you are having a difficult time losing weight. These conditions can only be confirmed through blood tests, so make sure you get an appointment with an endocrinologist as soon as possible:
1. Hypothyroidism
Hypothyroidism refers to the body’s inability to produce thyroid hormones, making it difficult for your body to process foods that you ingest. You get a slower metabolism because of the severe decrease in thyroid hormones circulating in your body, making it difficult for your body to digest and distribute nutrients in your body.
Classic signs of hypothyroidism include constipation, lethargy, sudden weight gain, irritability, dry skin, brittle hair and nails, and water retention, in particular on the legs.
There are many forms of hypothyroidism, and it is easy to misdiagnose it if high levels of TSH (Thyrotropin-Releasing Hormone), and low levels of T3 (Triiodothyronine) and T4 (Thyroxine) are not showing up on the lab test. If you feel something is wrong with you and hypothyroidism does not show up on blood tests, consider undergoing the more sensitive saliva test that detects low thyroid and adrenal fatigue which often go together.
2. Adrenal Fatigue
Adrenal fatigue often goes together with hypothyroidism and other endocrine disorders. It is caused by the adrenal system, the body’s fight-or-flight system, being out of balance; thus, causing your body to be in “fight” mode all the time.
In many ways, it is detrimental to your health because your body is always stressed and on its toes. When your body is in “fight” mode, your body’s initial response is to store every bit of fat as a cushion for an incoming crisis. Because your adrenals are fatigued, your body is led into believing that it has to keep on holding on to every carbohydrate, protein, and fat for you to use when the need arrives. And so, you retain water and gain weight without intending to.
Doing a saliva test is the best way to confirm the presence of adrenal fatigue. As for treatment, it can be lengthy because you need to give your adrenal system sufficient time to rest from all the stresses it has been through. Therefore, you must eat clean and within the prescribed diet, sleep well, take recommended supplements, and do gentle exercises.
Gaining weight is not just about overeating and being lazy about exercise. Endocrine disorders also contribute a lot to having you put on extra weight without your intention. Hypothyroidism and adrenal fatigue are two of the most common conditions that cause weight gain. If you address the root of these conditions, then you will lose weight naturally even without much effort.
