What hormonal alterations are the most fattening and how can we treat them?

  • “For years it has been known that there are some hormones closely related to obesity in a bidirectional way. Obesity can alter the levels and actions of different and, in turn, hormones control processes directly linked to obesity.”

Hormones are chemical messengers produced by the endocrine glands that circulate in the blood and bind to specific receptors in different organs and tissues of the body.

In addition, they have a fundamental role in our body, because They are in charge of regulating essential processes such as:

  • Growth

  • The reproduction

  • glucose metabolism

  • The immune response

  • He

  • The state of mind

  • The fats…

Hormonal imbalances in people with obesity

This bidirectional relationship between hormones and obesity is very clear when SEEN experts point out how obesity can cause different endocrine disorders.

  • For example, between 25% and 50% of people with obesity have resistance to which can lead to type 2 diabetes, as well as complications related to the disease.

Besides, Obesity is a risk factor for the development of chronic pathologies as:

  • Cardiovascular diseases (coronary, heart failure and stroke)

  • Respiratory (sleep apnea syndrome and asthma)

  • Musculoskeletal (osteoarthritis)

  • And even tumors such as breast, colon, liver and endometrial cancer.

What relationship exists between hormones and obesity?

What hormones does fat affect?

Manuel D. Gahete, biologist, Doctor of Science and researcher and member of the SEEN, points out that “obesity may be the only cause of these diseases and can always increase the risk of developing them”.

  • People with obesity normally present a great alteration of different hormonal systems which may have pathological consequences.

“Obesity is characterized by an excessive accumulation of fat in the body, mainly in it and when the latter is saturated, it infiltrates the organs,” says Dr. Hollanda.

Consequently, as the specialist adds, “circulating blood levels of different hormones are altered, such as:

  • Leptin (appetite regulator)

  • Adiponectin (produced by adipose tissue)

  • growth hormone

  • Ghrelin (appetite stimulant)

  • Insulin

  • testosterone, among others.

Besides, obesity can induce a state of resistance to the functioning of these hormonesthat is, the cells and tissues that must respond to their action do not do so appropriately (as occurs with insulin).

What hormonal changes make you fat

As for the other part of this vicious circle, Hollanda’s doctor highlights some hormonal changes that can be associated with weight gain and obesity, among which we should highlight:

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  • Excess cortisol (hormone related to )

  • Excess growth hormone.

In addition, the decrease in gonadal hormones due to diseases or in the menopause and hormonal alterations in polycystic ovarian syndrome they are also associated with weight gain and changes in body composition that favor fat accumulation.

Insulin is one of the hormones that is altered by obesity.

New discoveries about the relationship between hormones and obesity

The already proven close relationship between obesity and hormones opens a wide field for research in this regard. Hollanda’s doctor recalls that:

  • “To avoid obesity or try to reverse it, it is important maintain a healthy lifestyle that includes a balanced diet and regular physical activity to prevent not only obesity but also its complications.

But we must go further.

  • “In the most serious cases, in addition to this healthy lifestyle, pharmacological treatment is used in which gastrointestinal hormone analogues or even , which also acts as a great modulator of these hormones.”

  • “The research into the gastrointestinal hormones that regulate hunger and satiety It is currently one of the lines of the pharmaceutical industry with the greatest investment in the specialty area of ​​Endocrinology and Nutrition”.

In this sense, the biologist Manuel D. Gahete maintains that in recent years important advances have been made in the study of hormones and obesity.

  • “We are beginning to understand how and when hormones are produced, what functions they perform, how they can be modulated, and what impact they have on health and obesity.”

The researcher states that one of the most important discoveries is the role that hunger hormones, such as ghrelin and leptin, play in the regulation of appetite and body weight control:

  • “Ghrelin is produced in the stomach and stimulates appetite, while leptin, produced by fat cells, suppresses appetite and promotes satiety.”

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