Are These 3 Hormonal Imbalances Secretly Harming Your Health?

Can’t lose weight? Hormonal imbalances may be to blame. Here are 3 to watch out for. Correcting these may help you lose weight and improve your health.

If you have trouble losing weight, you may just think of it as a nuisance, but you should pay attention, as this could be a sign of more serious underlying health issues.  In fact, there are are a number of factors that can cause resistance to weight loss, including chronic inflammation, leaky gut syndrome, nutritional imbalances, exposure to environmental toxins, and more. And one cause that is often overlooked is hormonal imbalances.

You are probably aware of the fact that too much of the hormone insulin is responsible for weight gain (as well as diabetes and other inflammation-related diseases), but there are other hormones that come into play as well, as discussed by Dr. Mark Hyman in his best-selling book, The Blood Sugar Solution.

Here are 3 other hormonal imbalances that Doctor Hyman says can be a factor in weight gain and inability to lose weight – as well as overall health.

1. Thyroid

Thyroid function plays a vital role to maintain a healthy weight, and hypothyroid becomes a major player in weight loss resistance. Research shows hypothyroidism, or low thyroid function, affects one in five women and one in ten men. In over half of these cases, this condition isn’t diagnosed.

Many things, including diet, nutrient deficiencies, stress, and environmental toxins, contribute to these imbalances. A common cause of hypothyroidism is gluten intolerance…

Other major culprits that interfere with thyroid function include pesticides and heavy metals. Nutrient deficiencies can also slow things down. Your thyroid needs specific nutrients to run optimally including selenium, zinc, iodine, and omega 3 fats…

2. Cortisol

Chronic stress is another source of weight loss resistance…

Cortisol is an adrenal hormone that helps you to run faster, see further, hear better, and pump fuel into your bloodstream for quick energy, in part of the fight or flight response… It also shuts down digestion and slows your metabolism.

All of this is perfectly normal in the short term…, yet if left unchecked, prolonged stress and high levels of cortisol cause high blood sugar, increased belly fat, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and muscle loss.

Finding ways to manage stress—including meditation, yoga, deep breathing, and changing your thinking—has become fundamental to overcoming weight loss resistance.

3. Sex hormones

Sex hormone imbalances like estrogen and testosterone can also cause weight problems. Having too much estrogen causes weight gain whether you’re a man or woman. For both genders, too much sugar, refined carbs, and alcohol can spike estrogen.

Keeping your gut healthy also cultivates healthy sex-hormone metabolism. Too little fiber or too many antibiotics damage the gut, triggering estrogen spikes because your body can’t properly detoxify or excrete waste.

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Low testosterone in men can also accelerate aging. Lack of exercise, alcohol, stress, environmental toxins, diseases like diabesity, or even pituitary problems can also lower testosterone.

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Read more at MindBodyGreen.com, or in Dr. Hyman’s book, The Blood Sugar Solution.