7 health conditions that are responsible for making you fat

Eating junk food and lack of exercise may not be the only reason you aren't losing weight.

By: Editorial Team | | Updated: July 20, 2015 7:49 am

Tags: Chronic stress Vitamin D deficiency

Eating habits and exercise routine are not the only factors that affect your weight. According to experts, being stressed, depressed or even the lack of vitamin D can be a reason for weight gain. Here are five common weight gain misconceptions.

Chronic stress: Living with anxiety, stress or grief, causes your body to produce an excessive amount of cortisol – a hormone that will make your body store fat, especially around the waist. This type of weight gain increases the risk of serious health problems. Read about how stress affects your weight loss goals

Cushing’s syndrome: Cushing’s syndrome or hypercortisolism is a condition caused when the adrenal glands produce too much cortisol. This leads to a buildup of fat in the face, upper back and abdomen. Cushing’s syndrome can also be a side-effect of certain medications.

Hypothyroidism: Thyroid hormone is essential for burning stored fat. If your thyroid is under-active, your body may not produce enough thyroid hormone to help burn stored fat. As a result, your metabolism is slower and you will store more fat than you burn — especially if you’re not physically active.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS): This is the result of a hormonal imbalance, afflicts more than five million women all over the world. Common symptoms are irregular menstrual bleeding, acne, excessive facial hair, thinning hair, difficulty in getting pregnant and weight-gain that is not caused by excessive eating. Read about the top 10 reasons why you’re not losing weight

Syndrome X: Also called insulin-resistance or hyperinsulinemia (high insulin levels), syndrome X goes hand-in-hand with weight gain. Syndrome X is a cluster of health conditions thought to be rooted in insulin resistance. When your body is resistant to the insulin, other hormones that help control your metabolism don’t work as well.

Depression: Many people find comfort in food. They turn to eating to ease their emotional distress, thus resulting in weight gain.

Hormonal changes in women: Hormonal changes in women during different stages of life like at puberty, during pregnancy, and at menopause causes weight gain. Read: 5 mistakes that are sabotaging your weight loss goals

Lack of vitamin D: Receptors in your brain need vitamin D to keep hunger and cravings in check, as well as to pump up levels of the mood-elevating hormone serotonin. Vitamin D even optimises the body’s ability to absorb other important weight loss nutrients, especially calcium. When your body lacks calcium, it can experience up to a five-fold increase in the fatty acid synthase, an enzyme that converts calories into fat. By fuelling your body with the vitamin D-rich nutrients it needs to get out of a fat-storage state and into a fat-burning one — you could potentially speed weight-loss by up to 70 percent. Here are 12 health risks of vitamin D deficiency.

Read about twelve shocking reasons you are gaining weight.

Source: IANS
Image source: Getty Images

Published : July 17, 2015 6:40 pm | Updated:July 20, 2015 7:49 am

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