Medical Weight Loss

Medical Weight Loss Is the process of losing weight with the help & guidance of a medical professional through lifestyle changes and/or medications.

WHY IS IT DIFFICULT TO LOSE WEIGHT?

1. Age
   • At 30 there is a natural gradual decline in lean muscle mass. Lean muscle mass utilizes more calories.
   • After 40, typically there is a lack of activity level generally decreases which means you are not burning enough calories.
   • Hormonal changes occur.
     • For women, after menopause there is a significant drop in estrogen that encourages extra pounds to settle around the belly.
     • Men, experience a drop in testosterone around the age of 40.
     • Both leading to a shift in fat distribution
     • Growth Hormone (GH) begins to decrease as well. This helps the body maintain muscle mass and repair.
     • Your metabolism (thyroid) slows down (this converts your calories into energy). Increased stress can increase levels of the hormone ghrelin or leptin, which makes you hungrier.

2. You are under chronic stress
   • Cortisol plays important roles in the body. It regulates stress, the inflammation, and immune response. Elevated cortisol levels can be caused a variety of issues such as acute or chronic stress, overactivity or issues with the pituitary or adrenal glands, or medication side effects (i.e. prednisone). When your body is in a stressed state, whether good or bad it stimulates the sympathetic nervous system “fight or flight” which creates a state of arousal and is essential for survival situations i.e. seeing a bear in the woods.
   • Arousal of the body are things like
     • Rapid and shallow breathing to get more oxygen
     • Rapid heart rate to pump blood to your vital muscles i.e. heart and brain – increasing blood pressure and possibly formation of artery-clogging deposits
     • Tingling or “jelly” arms orles as the blood is going to heart and brain
     • Upset stomach as the blood is being redirected to vital body parts
     • Muscle tension – tight throat and chest
     • Increased metabolic body temperature will leave you feeling of hot and sweaty due to increased adrenaline to cool down your body.
     • It also increases your appetite and can cause cravings for salty, sweet, and fatty foods which can lead to insulin resistance (leading to gaining weight). Direct mechanisms (causing people to eat more) or indirectly (decreasing sleep and exercise).
     • Brain changes that may contribute to anxiety, depression, and addiction
   • As you can see the physiological changes in the body due to stress is significant. Prolonged stress leads to high levels of circulating cortisol and decreases the effectiveness of cortisol to regulate both the inflammatory and immune response because it decreases tissue sensitivity to cortisol. High cortisol levels lead to increased inflammatory cytokines production which increases inflammation in the body.
   • Chronic stress may also lead to the following: Low testosterone and increased aromatase/ estrogen levels,, Decreased T4 to T3 conversion, (leading to a state of thyroid resistance

3. You are eating less
   • We all get busy with life. We often do not make time to prepare healthy balanced meals.
   • There are many diets out there but the most important thing to remember is everything is good in moderation. Extreme dieting or chronic calorie restriction can lead to metabolic damage which lowers your metabolic rate. Your body will naturally conserve energy by reducing the number of calories you burn and store fat because it thinks it is not going to get anything nutrients.
4. You are not getting enough sleep
   • GH is your repair hormone and is most active at night. When you eat a meal later in the evening you are stimulating your metabolism when it should be slowing down. Intermittent fasting is good as it gives your body a chance to rest.
5. You may be retaining water. Excess sodium holds onto water.

Treatment Highlights

• Get professional and medical assistance to support in your weight-loss journey
• Optimize your health
• Improve energy, mood, and/or immune
• Safe & effective

FAQ