“No matter how little I eat the weight just stays on.”

It’s a frustrating and tedious process-losing weight. There are so many factors that go into weight loss.

#1. Our body thinks we’re starving when we cut our calories significantly. In response to this lower amount of food, the body will lower the metabolism so it won’t lose weight. It likes to stay at the current sustained weight rather than an ideal weight. However, there are ways to trick the body into thinking it is not starving. Specific shifts in diet can alter hormonal responses it adapts by reestablishing the body’s ability to burn fat for energy. Diet variation is the quickest way to lose weight.

#2. Estrogen dominance. This is seen in women and in men. Estrogen dominance occurs when the ratio of estrogen to progesterone is higher favoring estrogen. We get excess estrogen from birth control; estrogen mimickers or xenoestrogenss in many self-care products being used in our country; estrogen added to chicken and meat products to make the animals bigger and fatter; and excess estrogen that does not get metabolized in the liver and excreted properly if you have candida. Excess weight stored in your body as fat also produces its own estrogen. The fatter the body, the more estrogen is produced. 

Other symptoms of estrogen dominance may include bloating, decreased sex drive, mood swings, headaches, sleep problems, PCOS, heavy periods, infertility, hair loss, anxiety and poor memory. 

When estrogen dominance is found through testing, diet and supplements that will lower the exogenous estrogen and estrogen produced in the body are prescribed, along with learning about estrogen mimickers and how to avoid these products.  

#3 Insulin Resistance. Due to our high glycemic American diet and stress, insulin resistance is also a contributor to not losing weight. The body needs insulin to get glucose fuel into the cells. Like a lock and key the glucose can’t get into the cells without insulin. The body makes enough but it isn’t getting through the cell walls. This can be due to damage to the cell membranes from toxins such as mold or mercury and can be due to having too much sugar in our diets. The insulin just becomes ineffective at managing all that sugar. The cells are actually malnourished because all the glucose stays outside the cells. This can cause weight gain, low energy and even organ damage from the high sugar. You may be diagnosed as pre-diabetic or even diabetic. Again the excess body fat increases insulin resistance directly. Diet and targeted supplements to lower blood sugar and improve cell membrane function are recommended.

#4. Toxins. By themselves, toxins such as mold mycotoxins and mercury can lower Leptin a hormone that controls weight gain and loss.  

By addressing each of these issues, achieving an ideal weight becomes possible once the obstacles that block the body from burning fat as fuel are removed.

Sharon Reese Chud, AFMC is a functional medicine practitioner and nutritionist. She sees all clients on Zoom and offers a free 20 minute consultation. For more information, call 215-680-2354, email [email protected] and visit SRCDietAndWellness.com. See ad, page 15.