Losing weight abnormally may be your body's hint towards a hidden disease

If you are losing weight without any known reason, get yourself checked. @shutterstock

Losing weight without doing any physical activity or sweating it out in the gym can sound great at first. But it is indicative of a serious underlying condition you may not be aware of. If you observe that you are suddenly losing 4.5-5 kg or 5 per cent of your normal body weight over a period of 6-12 months or less, seek medical help without giving it a second thought. According to a study done at the University of South Florida Health, unexplained weight-loss during your ageing years may be an early indicator of Alzheimer’s Disease. However, there are far more serious diseases and conditions that you’re unintended weight loss can hint at. Here are 10 possible reasons for that sudden weight loss.

Cancer:

Cancer results in increased inflammation which leads to muscle wasting and disruption of appetite-regulating hormones. @shutterstock

When your body starts experiencing uncontrollable growth of cells it leads to cancer. Your cells start to quickly divide and spread. It can begin in your skin or in tissues that cover internal organs (carcinoma) or in bone, lungs, cartilage, or blood-forming tissue such as the bone marrow (leukaemia), or immune cells (lymphoma or myeloma). Sometimes the cancer cells break away from their original cells and attack other organs or tissues by way of the lymph system or bloodstream and are known as metastatic cancer. Cancer results in increased inflammation which leads to muscle wasting and disruption of appetite-regulating hormones. A growing tumour may also increase in your resting energy expenditure (REE) and thus result in weight loss. Early symptoms range from fever, fatigue, pain, skin changes followed by sudden muscle and joint pain, hoarseness and difficulty swallowing.

Overactive thyroid:

Hyperthyroidism or overactive thyroid is a condition that arises when your thyroid gland produces increased levels of thyroid hormone. @shutterstock

Hyperthyroidism or overactive thyroid is a condition that arises when your thyroid gland produces increased levels of thyroid hormone. These hormones regulate your metabolism and other functions in your body. If your thyroid is overactive, you will burn calories very fast irrespective of your diet which will lead to sudden weight loss. You may also experience shortness of breath, irregular heart rate, anxiety, fatigue, troubles in sleeping, hand tremors, period problems in women, mood swings, increased sweating, and hot flushes.

Tuberculosis:

This contagious disease that usually affects the lungs, tuberculosis is caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. @shutterstock

This contagious disease that usually affects the lungs, tuberculosis is caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Although the reasons are yet to be a found, weight loss and decreased appetite are major signs of TB. You can catch TB without getting sick. It spreads through the air. When your immunity system tries to fight this condition, the bacteria tend to become inactive. This is known as latent TB and over time has the potential to turn into active TB. Tb gets reflected in form of a bad cough that lasts for 3 weeks or more, chest pain, coughing up blood or phlegm, chills, night sweats, fever, fatigue, etc.

Depression:

A type of mood disorder, depression can cause sudden weight loss and appetite. @shutterstock

A type of mood disorder, depression can cause sudden weight loss and appetite. It’s marked by feeling low, sad, or empty for a minimum of 2 weeks at a stretch. These emotions make it difficult for the individual to continue his daily activities such as going to school or work with vigour and interest. The individual’s eating patterns drastically get affected and lead to considerable weight loss. A depressed individual shows signs of constant sadness, loss of interest in daily hobbies, increased or decreased sleep, lack of concentration, irritability and suicidal thoughts. If you think you are suffering from these signs, consider seeing your therapist.

Type 1 diabetes:

Diabetes1 is a type of diabetes which is a metabolic disease that results in increased sugar levels in your blood. @shutterstock

Diabetes1 is a type of diabetes which is a metabolic disease that results in increased sugar levels in your blood. Your sudden weight loss can be because of diabetes. Your immunity system attacks your pancreatic cells that are responsible for making insulin in your body. As a result, in the absence of enough insulin, the body is unable to use glucose for energy. This raises the levels of blood glucose. This excess glucose is then removed by your kidneys through urine. Urination causes sugar to leave your body resulting in considerable calorie loss which contributes to your reduction in weight. If you are suffering from diabetes then you may be suffering from frequent urination, excessive thirst, intense hunger, sudden weight loss, fatigue, cuts, and bruises that do not heal properly, and numbness or tingling sensation in your feet and hands.

Parkinson’s disease:

It’s a long term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. @shutterstock

It’s a long term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. The symptoms develop gradually over time. Your smooth body movements are possible because of the neurotransmitter called dopamine made by “substantia nigra” present in your brain. In Parkinson’s the cells of substantia nigra start to die and consequently, dopamine levels also start to drop. Once the drop reaches 60-80 per cent, the symptoms start surfacing. Medicines can only, for now, improve the condition but cannot cure it. Signs of impaired posture and balance, loss of automatic movements such as smiling, blinking, swinging arms while walking, changes in writing, and speech changes start surfacing in affected individuals. Although weight loss is not one of the main symptoms of this condition, rather patients are observed to lose weight prior to the diagnosis.

Crohn’s disease:

Chron’s disease is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease that affects the lining of the digestive tract and is capable of resulting in life-threatening complications. @shutterstock

Chron’s disease is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease that affects the lining of the digestive tract and is capable of resulting in life-threatening complications. It causes diarrhoea, abdominal pain and cramps, reduced appetite, fatigue blood in the stool, ulcers and weight loss.

HIV/ AIDS:

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) destroys our immunity such that our body finds it impossible to fight infections and diseases at all. @shutterstock

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is a virus that our immunity system is unable to fight or destroy. HIV destroys our immunity such that our body finds it impossible to fight infections and diseases at all. It manifests into AIDS later and is one of the leading cause of death. Initially there no signs that reflect HIV but when it progresses to AIDS it starts to show signs of swollen lymph nodes, fever, rash, sore throat, muscle aches, ulcer in mouth and fatigue. The individual also starts losing weight considerably and develops a blurred and distorted vision.

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD):

It’s a progressive lung disease and includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis. @shutterstock

It’s a progressive lung disease and includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis. Many patients suffer from both the conditions. Emphysema gradually destroys your air sacs present in your lungs which makes breathing difficult for you. Chronic bronchitis results in inflammation of the airways that is responsible for bringing air into your lungs. This produces mucus, coughing and breathing issues. COPD is marked by signs of shortness of breath, wheezing, chest tightness, mild coughing with or without mucus. In later stages, laboured breathing in COPD burn a lot of calories which lead to weight loss. It becomes difficult for the patient to breathe while eating also and may require 10 times more calories to breathe in comparison to people without COPD. Long term exposure to air pollution, dust and smoking can cause COPD.

Addison’s disease:
When your immune system attacks your adrenal glands it results in Addison’s disease. The adrenal glands, as a result, find it difficult to make enough hormones like cortisol and aldosterone. Cortisol hormone is responsible for regulating your metabolism, appetite, and other functions. Thus, low levels of cortisol reduce your appetite and increase weight loss. You may suffer from fatigue, low blood pressure, and muscle weakness, hyperpigmentation and crave for salt.

Published: January 16, 2019 2:37 pm

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