Hyperthyroidism and Weight Gain
You’ve probably heard or read in hundreds of books and articles that prevention is better than cure. But what will you do if there’s no way to prevent what’s coming? In some unfortunate instances, such as hyperthyroidism, there are no known ways of prevention, which brings us to one of the most undesirable side effects of hyperthyroidism: weight gain.
What is Hyperthyroidism?
Hyperthyroidism is a medical condition wherein the thyroid gland makes an excess amount of thyroid hormones. The most common example of severe hyperthyroidism is the Graves’ disease. Symptoms usually develop over a long period of time, sometimes so insidiously, that is it discovered many years later. The Graves’ disease has no cure, but there are known cures for hyperthyroidism.
Relationship between Weight Gain and Hyperthyroidism?
Weight gain and loss is one of the major complaints of patients that confront hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism. Hyperthyroidism usually has a limited impact on weight gain. An alternative explanation of weight gain in hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism is linked with a simple analogy of lifestyle. Due to the tiredness/fatigue called by hypo/hyperthyroidism, some patients tend to reduce the level of exertion during the day and limit physical activity. Increase in appetite can also lead to rapid weight gain in this condition.
Other Factors that Lead to Weight Gain in Hyperthyroidism?
Hormonal Imbalances:Sometimes weight gain in a hypo/hyperthyroidism patient occurs due to hormonal imbalances. Some women develop the thyroid problem after menopause, thus making hormonal imbalance more likely, which results in weight gain.
Anxiety: Another instance of weight gain in hypo/hyperthyroidism can include weight gain due to anxiety and depression while in the initial stages of discovering the disease. A lot of people are mentally unprepared to confront hypo/hyperthyroidism and the new found knowledge of the disease sets off their eating schedule. Being overly concerned about weight gain, some people tend to switch to an unbalanced diet. This is referred to the yo-yo effect, which means the initially there will be success in dieting and will result in temporary weight loss, but there will be weight gain once the unbalanced diet is quit.
There can be many different explanations for weight gain in hypo/hyperthyroidism. Each explanation depends on an analysis of each individual confronting the disease.
How to Deal With the Weight Gain
Don’t increase your medication. Increasing your medication in hypo/hyperthyroidism to counter weight gain can pose serious cardiac threats to your health. Instead, follow a balanced diet and exercise at regular intervals (three to four sessions are recommended by a medical officer) are enough to fight weight gain. Eating healthy and working out may seem like a very ordinary thing to do – but this ordinary routine is prescribed by health experts around the world because both are very effective tools to live healthy.