Being Overweight Contributes to Heart Problems, But the Issues Extend Beyond That. Medical Weight Loss in Houston, TX, Helps.
A number of other issues can arise that aren’t as well-known but can have a major effect on your overall health and well-being.
Medical weight loss in Houston, TX, addresses the underlying causes of weight gain and common struggles with losing it while improving health simultaneously.
An unhealthy weight affects physical and mental health more than you may realize.
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Mental Fog and Memory Impairment
You may feel “off your game” after you gain weight, and sometimes, it’s attributed to multiple problems. For one, if you’re overweight and aren’t happy with your appearance, you may feel depressed or self-conscious.
Obesity could also cause a hormonal imbalance, insulin resistance, digestive disruptions, or sleep interruptions that lead to depression. And depression is known to impact the neurotransmitters, serotonin and dopamine, that affect decision-making, concentration, and recollection of details.
You might also have higher levels of cortisol being released, which can impact the part of the brain responsible for recollection and memory formation (the hippocampus).
What’s more, having extra weight causes low-grade inflammation throughout the body that can impact the brain. The neurons may not be able to communicate with one another as well.
Furthermore, the brain needs glucose to fuel it, and when you suffer from insulin resistance, the brain may not receive all the energy it requires to function optimally.
Additionally, when you’re obese, your blood flow might not be what it was before you gained the weight. As a result, your brain may not receive all the nutrients and oxygen it requires in a timely manner, interfering with cognitive function.
Lastly, when you have high levels of visceral fat, which is the fat around the organs, it can change the brain’s structure and function, causing you to process information slowly, have a decreased attention span, and experience mild memory lapses. You might struggle to multitask, stay focused, or remember names.
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Increased Likelihood of Pelvic Floor Changes
Your pelvic floor supports the uterus, bowels, and bladder in women. In males, it provides support to the prostate, rectum, and bladder.
When you have excess body weight, it places pressure on these muscles and ultimately weakens them and the surrounding connective tissue. Weakened pelvic floor muscles can lead to increased urinary urgency, incontinence, and less control over bladder function.
Metabolic and hormonal factors that stem from excess weight cause inflammation and alter the pelvic floor muscles’ integrity.
The pressure from the extra weight can contribute to stress incontinence, making it more common for you to experience frequent urges to urinate, despite your bladder not being full.
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Decreased Immune System Efficiency
Diabetes, for one, is associated with excess weight and interferes with how well your immune system functions.
On top of that, though, being overweight or obese can also make your immune system less responsive and efficient at protecting you against pathogens. The fatty tissue in your body releases inflammatory substances known as cytokines. This low-grade inflammation interferes with immune signaling.
Your immune cells might not be as strong as they could be when you’re overweight. They may not be able to identify or destroy bacteria, viruses, or other invaders as effectively.
Ultimately, when you’re overweight, you might not recover from an illness like a cold or flu, which may have once been harmless to you, as quickly. You’re also more at risk for complications.
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Elevated Risk of Hormonal Imbalances
Estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone are only a few of the hormones affected by being overweight. Your weight could also affect insulin production and sensitivity, so your body may not be using glucose for energy as efficiently.
Your body may produce more cortisol, which is a stress hormone that contributes to irritability, sleep disturbances, anxiety, and fatigue.
Although it’s no guarantee, obesity has been known to negatively impact thyroid hormone metabolism and signaling. You could then feel sluggish. The effects can extend throughout the body and lead to mood instability and problems with appetite regulation.
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Slow Wound Healing
Although you might have the flu for longer or have more severe symptoms from it when you’re overweight, those extra pounds can affect how your scrapes, surgical incisions, cuts, and other wounds heal.
The excess body fat you have impairs circulation, so the nutrients, oxygen, and healing factors needed to repair your tissue won’t reach the injury as quickly or as effectively.
In addition to the inflammation intended to help repair the damaged site, you might already have low-grade inflammation throughout the body that hinders the site from receiving what it needs, ultimately delaying the healing process.
If you have insulin resistance or diabetes, your high blood sugar levels could damage your small blood vessels. Your immune cells won’t be able to travel as freely, and your body might not fight off any infections as adequately, nor will the healing factors reach the affected area as easily.
Learn more here: Common Weight Gain Causes Explained: Psychological Eating Habits and More
Seeking Assistance for Weight Loss in Houston, TX
Because all the aspects of your health and wellness that can be affected by your weight and this list didn’t include all of them, medical weight loss in Houston, TX, can improve your well-being.
You may heal as easily, get sick less often or not as severely, and feel mentally with it.
Besides peptides for weight loss, such as semaglutide and tirzepatide, we also treat age-related hormonal decline in women and men to assist with weight loss.
While all this sounds fine and well, if you haven’t had luck with weight loss in the past, you may be a bit skeptical, which is completely understandable. For some reassurance, check out our reviews and hear firsthand about the success our previous clients have had.
Book an appointment with Dr. Shel today by calling (281) 313-7435 to discuss a weight loss treatment that’ll finally help you see results. You’ll even receive health benefits you didn’t realize were possible.
