Numerous studies that focused on hormones proved that they have an influence on your appetite and fat store. In this article, we will present you 9 beneficial ways for fixing the hormones which are in control of your weight.
Insulin is a hormone which is produces by beta cells in pancreas and it allows your cells to receive blood sugar for energy not matter what amount is needed for certain time. throughout the day, insulin is secreted in small amounts, on the other hand, after meals, in large amounts. Moreover, insulin represents the main fat storage hormone which tells fat cells to store fat and prevents stored fat to break down. Hyperinsulinemia or elevated insulin causes many health problems among which are obesity and metabolic syndrome.
Advices for normalizing and for improving insulin levels:
- Fill up on proteins – they raise insulin but in short terms. But, it will lead to long-term reduction in insulin resistance.
- Magnesium – Magnesium can improve insulin sensitivity and often people which are magnesium deficient are insulin resistant people. Take magnesium supplements.
- Green tea – it can lower your blood sugar and insulin levels so consume it often.
- Increase healthy fats intake – high insulin levels can be reduced by consuming omega 3 fats which can be found in fish.
- Minimize or avoid sugar because large amounts of fructose and sucrose are responsible for insulin resistance and raise insulin’s levels.
- Reduce carbohydrates – start diet which is low in carbs and which can help you to immediately low your insulin levels.
- Exercise – In one study was found that overweight women who walked or jogged after 14 weeks had improvement in their insulin sensitivity. So, exercise regularly.
Fat cells produce leptin, a satiety hormone which reduces appetite and usually makes you feel full. Its main role is communication with hypothalamus – portion of brain which regulates appetite and food intake. To be more clear, Leptin is a hormone which gives the brain information that there is enough fat in storage and there is no need for overeating. Obese people have high levels of Leptin, which means that should start eating less and lose weight, but in case of obesity, Leptin doesn’t work as it should. This is due to resistance of Leptin. Once its existance is impaired, your brain does not receive the information that there is enough fat storage, which means you are starving anf you want to eat. The reason why it is difficult to maintain weight loss in long-term is because Leptin’s levels reduce when you lose weight. Again brain thinks that you are starving and tells you to eat more. Both potential causes of Leptin resistance are chronically elevated insulin levels and inflammation in the hypothalamus.
Here are few advices for improvement of your Leptin sensitivity:
- Leptin sensitivity can be improved by exercising so, exercise more.
- Insufficient sleep usually leads to problems with Leptin levels and increased appetite so make sure that you get enough sleep.
- According to one study, women who took alpha- lipoic acid and fish oil and who were on a weight loss diet lost more weight and had smaller decrease of Leptin.
- Avoid inflammatory foods which cause inflammation, sugar drinks and trans fats.
- Eat more anti- inflammatory foods as fatty fish.
This hormone is commonly know as hunger hormone which is released when your stomach is empty and send one simple message to the hypothalamus – it tells you to eat. Before eating normally its levels are highest and lowest about an hour after your meal.
Obese people usually have lower levels of ghrelin than people of normal weight.
Some studies state that on obese people, after meals, ghrelin is only decreased slightly and due to this hypothalamus does not receive signal to stop eating and usually this leads to overeating.
Here are few advices for this problem:
- Ghrelin levels can be reduced by consumption of proteins in every meal so consume plenty of proteins in each meal.
- As first of course, avoid sugar and high- fructose corn syrups and sweetened drinks which impair ghrelin response after meals.
Cortisol is also known as stress hormone because it is released whenever your body is under some kind of stress, and it is produced by the adrenal glands.
Like other hormones, this one is vital to survival, but chronically elevated levels of cortison can lead to overeating and gain of weight. Women who have excess weight respond to stress with larger increase in cortisol. However, there are some cases whrere diet also raises cortisol. One study revealed that women who consumed low in calories diet had higher cortisol levels and were more stressed than women who practiced normal diet.
In case you want to reduce your cortisol levels you must:
- According to few researches, listening to music helps a lot and during medical procedures cortisol is not raising.
- Follow a balanced diet and do not cut calories to extreme low levels.
- You can start practicing meditation and reduce cortisol production.
This hormone is extremely important female hormone which is produced by the ovaries and regulates the female reproductive system. It depends of age, overall state of health and action of other hormones but both high and low levels of estrogen lead to weight gain. During puberty, estrogen starts to promotes fat storage in order to maintain fertility during the reproductive years and additionally it may stimulate fat gain in the first half of pregnancy.
According to some researchers, due to environmental influences, obese women have higher estrogen levels that women who are normal weighted.
During menopauze, estrogen levels drop as it is ledd produced in the ovaries and due to it, the site for fat storage is shifted from hips and tighs to abdomen.
This increases the disease risk and promotes insulin resistance.
Estrogen can be managed if:
- If you consume flax seeds which appear to be beneficial in most women.
- Physical activity normalizes estrogen levels to premenopausal and postmenopausal women.
- You eat plenty of fiber. Estrogen levels can be reduced by fiber.
- If you eat cruciferous vegetables which have beneficial effects on estrogen.
6. Neuropeptide Y (NPY)
This hormone stimulates appetite, especially carbohydrates and it is highest shape during periods of fasting or food deprivation. Neuropeptide hormone is produced in the brain and nervous system, and during times of stress, its levels are increased and can lead to overeating.
- Very long fasts such those over 24 hours, can increase NPY levels according to animal studies. So, do not fast for too long.
- If you start consuming plenty of soluble prebiotic fiber it will feed the good bacteria in the gut and will reduce NPY levels.
- You should eat more proteins than usual because by eating little amount of proteins you will increase its levels which lead to hunger and cause weight gain.
Similar to Peptide, this hormone is produced once the nutrients enter In the intestines in your gut. It keeps the blood sugar levels stable and makes you feel full.
Due to increased production of this hormone, a decrease in appetite occurs after weight loss surgery. Also in one study men to who GLP- 1 solution were given with breakfast said that were feeling more satisfied and ate 12% fewer calories during lunch.
How to increase GLP- 1:
- Consume green leafy vegetables because according to one study women which consumed vegetables like spinach and kale increased their GLP-1 level and lost more weight.
- Receive probiotic supplement because according to one animal study, this supplement increased GLP-1 levels which led to reduction of food intake.
- Consume a lot of proteins and food rich in protein like fish or yogurt which increase the GLP-1 levels and improve insulin sensitivity.
- Because chronic inflammation is connected to reduce GLP- 1 production you should consume anti- inflammatory foods.
8. Cholecystokinin (CCK)
This hormone is also produced in the gut by cells. Higher amounts of cholecystokinin reduce food intake in lean and obese people.
How to increase CCK:
- Make sure to consume more meals which are high in fiber because low in fiber meals lower the CCK levels according to one study.
- Consume more proteins at every meal.
- Eat healthy fat because the bad fat triggers the release of CCK.
9. Peptide YY (PYY)
This hormone is also released by cells in the intestines and colon and it controls appetite. Its main role is to reduce the food intake and decrease the risk of obesity.
How to increase PYY:
- Eat plenty of fiber.
- Try to consume more food low in carbohydrates in order to keep your blood sugar levels stable. You should know that increased blood sugar impairs PYY’s effects.
- Eat large amounts of proteins no matter from where they come, animal or plant.
It should be mentioned that hormones usually work together and increase and decrease the appetite along with fat storage. When your system is not working properly, you will start to struggle with weight issues. However, you shouldn’t panic because diet and some drastic changes in lifestyle can have good effects on these hormones.