Thyroid and Weight Management
The thyroid is very complex but we need to make sure to understand that the thyroid can impact weight. This can be through weight loss or weight gain. Learn more about weight management by continuing to read more!
Tag: weight gain
All About Hypothyroidism
When your thyroid is underperforming, this is known as hypothyroidism. This can create symptoms such as fatigue, weight gain, hair loss and more.
The Basics of the Thyroid
thyroid
Written by Dr. Claire Arcidiacono, ND
For further questions or concerns email me at [email protected]
The thyroid has many important functions in the body, but how much do you really know about it? Today, we get into the basics of the thyroid.†
What is the thyroid?
What exactly is a thyroid gland? Well to start off with, what is a gland? A gland is a type of organ that makes hormones or other secretions that “get stuff done.” There are two types of glands. One is called endocrine, the other is called exocrine. What does that mean exactly? Well it basically means that one type, the endocrine, secretes its hormones directly into the blood stream vs exocrine, which secretes its products into a “duct.” The thyroid is an example of an endocrine gland, since its hormones go directly into the blood. In contrast, sweat glands are exocrine type glands. (1) There are other differences in what is produced, but these are the main differences.†
The thyroid gland is located in the front of the neck and is shaped like a butterfly. This is what the doctor feels when he asks you to cough while he is palpating your throat.† (2)
The thyroid gland secretes three hormones. The first is Triiodothyronine or T3, which is the active form of thyroid hormone. The second is Thyroxine or T4. This is used to make T3. The last hormone is called calcitonin and it affects calcium and bone building.† (3)
HOW TO BE PROACTIVE ABOUT BONE HEALTH – INVITE HEALTH PODCAST, EPISODE 232. Listen Now>>
The thyroid doesn’t just decide to produce hormones. It is controlled by an enzyme called thyroid stimulating hormone or TSH. This is produced by the anterior pituitary gland. This is in turn controlled by another hormone. However that is outside the reach of this article.† (4)
The role of this gland
The thyroid is one of the most important glands in our body. It is in control of almost every system! To start off with the thyroid is in charge of “metabolic rate.” By metabolic rate, we mean body temperature, appetite, regulation of weight (aka weight gain and weight loss), and absorption of our nutrients from food, as well as blood sugar and cholesterol levels.†
The thyroid also affects the heart rate. In addition to the heart, the thyroid affects brain development in a fetus and memory in adults and children. Similarly, it also affects sleep patterns and quality. Those with thyroid disorders tend to suffer from either too much energy or too little energy!†
Sexual health such as libido, and maintenance of healthy menstrual cycle are also affected by the thyroid.†
BIRTH CONTROL PILLS AND VITAMIN DEFICIENCIES – INVITE HEALTH PODCAST, EPISODE 514. Listen Now>>
Healthy hair, skin, nails, as well as bone health, are all controlled by the thyroid.† (5)
What does this all mean? It means that the thyroid is in control or related to almost every system in our body. It controls them either directly via its hormones or via its hormones relationship to other hormones.†
Just like any other organ, things can go wrong with the thyroid. I won’t get into detail here since this is an introduction to the thyroid. I will be writing about each of these in more detail in later articles. The main two dysfunctions of the thyroid are hyper- and hypothyroidism. Also related to these two are nodules and goiters or in other words “growths of the thyroid.” While I will be discussing natural approaches to thyroid health, it is important to understand that thyroid supplements are very strong. They do not prevent disease, but rather are used to treat a condition. Using them to “prevent” a problem can actually cause problems later on. Unfortunately, there is really not prevention when it comes to thyroid.†
My article next week will be discussing thyroid labs and what they mean. It is important to know what the labs mean before we can get into treatment.†
For further questions or concerns related to the thyroid, email me at [email protected].
Sources
(1) https://thebiologynotes.com/exocrine-vs-endocrine-glands/
(2)Standring S, Borley NR, et al., eds. (2008). Gray’s anatomy : the anatomical basis of clinical practice (40th ed.). London: Churchill Livingstone. ISBN 978-0-8089-2371-8.
(3)Hall JE, Guyton AC (2011). Guyton and Hall textbook of medical physiology (12th ed.). Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders/Elsevier. ISBN 978-1-4160-4574-8.
(4)Boron WF, Boulpaep EL (2012). Medical Physiology (2nd ed.). Philadelphia: Saunders. p. 1052. ISBN 978-1-4377-1753-2. \
(5)Boron WF, Boulpaep EL (2012). Medical Physiology (2nd ed.). Philadelphia: Saunders. p. 1052. ISBN 978-1-4377-1753-2.
Preventing Holiday Season Weight Gain – InVite Health Podcast, Episode 234
The holiday season has arrived! Here’s how you can safely, efficiently and effectively help prevent that holiday weight gain.
Fending Off Fall and Winter Weight Gain – InVite Health Podcast, Episode 203
Did you know that during the fall and winter the average American gains a minimum of 5 pounds? Here’s how to fend off that weight gain.
Eating a Good Breakfast Keeps Weight Gain Away
Photo by Ivan Timov on Unsplash
Weight management is a challenge. Technology has led to a sedentary lifestyle; instead of physical activity, a large majority of Americans spend their time in front of a screen, lending to an unhealthy epidemic – obesity. A new study says that eating a good breakfast and not snacking throughout the day can lead to a healthier life and prevent weight gain.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 36.5% of adults and about 17% of children in the United States live with obesity. Obesity has been shown to increase the risk of developing serious conditions and diseases like heart disease, type 2 diabetes and even cancer.
The Cost of Obesity
As American waistlines expand, so does the cost of obesity – both for the government and the individuals. According to an article in Policito published in March 2017, “There are the direct medical costs of treating obesity-related diseases including Type-2 diabetes, heart disease and stroke, high blood pressure, arthritis, and related cancers, among others. And then there are the indirect costs: lost productivity, more illness, extra infrastructure to handle heavier patients and residents.” Gallup-Healthways Well-Being index reports that extra healthcare costs from obesity were $538 million in 2016, more than half of the budget of the city’s public school system.
The national costs are shocking. Professor at Emory University, Zhou Yang, who studies the impact of obesity on the medical system, has reported the obese older males spent $190,657 more on lifetime healthcare expenses than their normal weight peers; while older obese women spent $224,629 more.
Link between Breakfast and Weight Gain
A new study, conducted by Dr. Hana Kahleova from the Loma Linda University School of Public Health (LLUSPH) in California, has been published in The Journal of Nutrition. She collaborated with other researchers at LLUSPH and the Institute for Clinical and Experimental Medicine and the Institute of Endocrinology for the study.
Researchers worked with participants from the Adventist Health Study-2, which monitors the lives of 96,000 Seventh-day Adventists from the U.S. and Canada. Researchers of the original study consider Adventist populations to be at a lower risk of developing conditions and diseases brought on by obesity, due to their specific eating habits.
Led by Dr. Kahleova, 50,660 adults (30 years old or older) were used in order to find possible link between when and how often people eat and their body mass index.
The study resulted in many findings. Firstly, individuals who ate only one or two meals per day had a decrease in BMI. Conversely, those who ate more than three meals a day increased their BMI. The more meals they ate, the greater the weight gain. Secondly, researchers found that those who had breakfast regularly tended to lose more weight than people who skipped breakfast.
The participants whose largest meal of the day was breakfast experienced a large BMI decrease, in contract to those who made lunch or dinner their largest meal.
Researchers also found that skipping dinner altogether and having a longer, overnight fast contributed to weight loss.
Also found in the study, participants younger than 60 tended to gain more weight, whereas those over 60 tended to experience a loss in BMI. “Before age 60 years, those eating calories earlier in the day had less weight gain,” says Professor Fraser. “Over decades, the total effect [of regularly eating a large breakfast] would be very important,” he adds.
Alternative Methods to Manage Weight
Weight management supplements can be an important tool for your overall weight management needs, in addition to following a healthy and active lifestyle.
According to Jerry Hickey, R.Ph, there are three ingredients that support weight management.
- White Kidney Bean. “This extract attaches to starch digesting enzymes to effectively decrease the absorption of sugar calories from carbohydrates.”
- “CLA from safflower oil has been used in numerous human clinical studies to reduce body fat by decreasing the amount of fat your body stores on the waistline and the thighs. It may also help to maintain muscle and prevent fat cells from refilling with fat.”
- Green Tea. “It’s primary polyphenol, ECGC, has been shown to improve the burning of fat and a number of studies prove that it can burn two-hundred to three-hundred additional calories per day. It may also improve metabolism if taken before exercise.”
Source: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/318448.php