Obesity Causes Imbalance

Continuing on with obesity, you know, I've been hearing quite a bit about hormones and their role in weight gain.  It is an indisputable fact that the concentration of some hormones goes haywire as people gain weight.  But listen up o' seekers of truth: Hormone imbalances are a consequence of weight gain (though I am certain they are also maintainers of such), but in and of themselves they are not the cause.

Hormones are chemicals messengers that have a number of functions, one being regulation or homeostasis.  Homeostasis is a control mechanism that maintains the balance in a system--it is a universal principle.  The peripheral nervous system is made up of the somatic and autonomic nervous systems (ANS), the latter controlling functions that are on auto pilot--the one's we don't have to think about.

The ANS has two branches that act in continual oscillation under normal conditions--the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems.  The sympathetic nervous system is responsible for our fight or flight responses; the parasympathetic for our rest and digest.  In other words, each branch of the ANS is responsible for various functions that support either build-up (parasympathetic) or breakdown (sympathetic) processes.  Energy utilization is one such process.

During energy buildup and storage or anabolism--when we extract and store our energy molecules--our parasympathetic system is the driver, controlling various hormones and chemical messengers.  During breakdown and utilization (fuel burning) or catabolism--it's our sympathetic nervous system that's the driver, with it's own hormones and neurotransmitters.  Parasympathetic prepares the body for build-up (rest and digest), which includes slowing molecular breakdown and energy utilization (sympathetic), increased blood flow to the digestive system, and decreased blood flow to the muscles.  When this system is in full force, we often feel relaxed, lazy, maybe even sluggish.  Our bodies are ripe for energy storage or weight gain when we are in rest and digest.

On the flip side, our sympathetic nervous system prepares the body for energy utilization, especially under stressful conditions.  Remember it's the fight or flight system.  During sympathetic stimulation, our metabolism speeds up so we burn fuel more efficiently, blood flow to the digestive organs decreases (less food coming in and being distributed to tissues, thus less stored), and muscles perfuse with blood (getting ready to work).  It's what makes you shake and tremble when you are stress or excited, although I am certain some people rarely feel it so strongly.

I say that because, no doubt, obese people are in a state of parasympathetic imbalance.  That is, their parasympathetic system is kicked in more often than their sympathetic system.  As a result, it has been observed in obese people that certain parasympathetic processes are acting normally while their sympathetic system is depressed.  The effects of such an imbalance is that obese people have difficulty burning fuel efficiently, while they are quite proficient at packing it in.

Okay, we'll no shiitake...we all know that: It's harder for obese people to lose weight.  No kidding...that doesn't mean they cannot.  The reason this happens is that when fuel keeps coming in as food, the body, in its profound intelligence, does what it's proficient at: stores it as fat for leaner times, for survival.  The body doesn't understand gluttony; it doesn't understand prosperity--it doesn't know 24-hr pizza delivery exists.  All it understands is, "Influx of food--store."  Period.  So that's what it does.

As a result of overeating, excessive weight gain and very likely low physical activity, the body is forced into this autonomic nervous system imbalance between parasympathetic and under-active sympathetic systems.  And a vicious cycle ensues.

Yes, it's the reason obese people don't see the same gains non-obese people see from short-term exercise...that's why they've got to make it lifestyle, and see what happens after two years of continued activity.  Too many obese people quit when they don't see result within three months.

And, yes, decreasing calories too quickly can lead to a stress both mental and physical, one that the body interprets as a need to store even more ("Starvation!").  That's why I always recommend to keep weight loss to realistic and healthy goals of one pound per week.  It's one thing I like about the Weight Watcher program--they do it slowly and steadily, advocating lifetime wellness and not just a crash-diet--literally and figuratively.

But here's the bottom line: In the end, it still comes down to calories in, and stored, versus calories burned.  It's just that the hormonal changes that occur--the ANS imbalance--slow things down that much more for the obese person.  In the end, though, part of the answer is still to exercise regularly and effectively, as well as change eating habits (see last post).  There is, however, one more obstacle that is probably the biggest hump when it comes to losing and keeping off weight, and one which I will be discussing in the next post--the human mind.

Symptoms Are Health!

When giving health talks I usually ask, "What is health?"  I am amazed at some of the answers that seem to come up again and again.  The most common is disease or symptom free.  This answer comes up so frequently that, obviously, it's what most people think, if they think about it at all.  Unfortunately, this definition or belief is probably what guides these people in their health decisions, whether consciously or not; and approaching health from this angle won't always lead to wise choices.

The truth is that symptoms actually are health.  Think of your common cold symptoms--runny nose, sneezing, coughing, congested sinuses, fever, and night sweats.  Each one of these has a role to play in fighting the infecting organism:

• Runny nose--mucous membranes in the nasal passages and nasopharynx (orifice connecting nasal passages to the throat) release a thick, sticky substance that carries away microorganisms which have tried to infiltrate this primary entrance to our internal environment.  Think of mucus as quicksand or mud in a mudslide--nothing will escape.
• Sneeze--a powerful blast of air, saliva, lacrimal secretions (tears) and mucus taking out anything and everything in its path.  Microorganisms entering the mouth, nose or pharynx are sneeze-blasted the heck out of there.  Consider a sneeze your body's internal tornado, just worse.
• Cough--similar to a sneeze, just clearing out the lungs, bronchi and oropharynx, as well as the nose and mouth.  Well call the cough the body's internal hurricane--not a dang thing left unshaken; and during a coughing fit--fuggedaboutit--category 5 cyclone!
• Congested sinuses--infections or any other irritants, including allergens, can lead to swelling of the mucous membranes; as membranes swell, they close off the nasal passages.  Essentially, sinus congestion is the Royal Guard--try getting in, go ahead...try.
• Fever--heats the body to incinerator temperatures, much higher than in what microorganisms can survive.  Fever is Death Valley for germs.
• Night sweats--heat and sweat flush the external barriers out, so the skin, scalp and orifices are like a hot, wet boiler room.  Consider night sweats a monsoon for microbes.

You can see that each one of these symptoms is the body's way of protecting itself.  And every illness/disease has associated symptoms to return the body to homeostasis.*  So why associate symptoms with sickness?

It's because historically--at least over the last 80 years or so--medical care has focused on relieving symptoms.  OK, that's nothing new--we all know that.  However, it is the reason why so many people still see the presence or absence of symptoms as the definitions of illness and health.  But I assure you what most consider illness actually is health.  Any questions?

*Or in the case of the body being overloaded by disease (AIDS, let's say), it's the body's attempt to return to homeostasis.  Whether or not the body can return to homeostasis is the true difference between illness and health.