Medication
Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs)
Scientific studies as to both the short and long term effects of certain types of medication has identified that a particular group of drugs; Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) maybe responsible for causing moderate to severe weight gain in the people who are currently taking them.
SSRIs are a group of antidepressants and when they were initially released for circulation it was widely (and erroneously) believed that these drugs would actually help to promote weight loss due to their appetite suppressant nature as well as the inhibiting effect they would ultimately have on appetite cravings compelled by virtue of negative emotional triggers.
However, careful study has identified that the polar opposite is actually true and regrettably, the research conducted this far into SSRI’s has not yet identified the precise, overarching reason as to why they affect the body in this manner.
Some physicians have hypothesised that because one of the most commonly experienced and reported symptoms associated with usage of SSRIs is hypoglycaemia which itself manifests itself in chronic hunger and low energy levels; this results in a perpetual vicious cycle. Although persuasive and logical there is no absolute evidence to support this proposal beyond reasonable doubt.
Out of all the medications that belong to the SSRI genus it would appear that Praxil (also prescribed under the name Paroxetine) is by far, the drug that happens to cause the most radical and profound degree of weight gain.
Coming in at a close second in terms of the degree of severity of weight gain that it causes is the drug Citalopram (Celexa). It has been suggested that the reason that this particular drug is responsible for weight gain in people who ingest it is due to the fact that it promotes an increase in appetite cravings for simple carbohydrates.
Tricyclic Antidepressants (TCAs)
Once a commonly relied upon and prescribed category of antidepressant drugs, TCAs have fallen in disrepute as a direct consequence of the degree of weight gain that they created for the people required to take them.
Although there is a degree of overlap between both SSRIs and TCAs in that both categories of drugs are responsible for promoting unwanted and undesirable weight gain in their victims, TCAs differ in the precise manner that they actually achieve this unfortunate outcome.
Specifically, studies have identified that drugs within the TCA genus are directly responsible for inhibiting the rate at which the metabolism of the body works. The metabolism is itself the physiological process utilised in the conversion of calories ingested into a usable source of energy throughout the body. At the risk of grossly oversimplifying a fairly complex principle of human physiology, the higher the speed at which the metabolism operates at then the more calories that are burned (not turned into adipose tissue).
Consumption of alcohol
Like anything else that we consume in this world, alcohol of any description will have a calorie value and there seems to be a widely held view that alcohol will result in a significant amount of weight gain acquired within a short period of time.
One of the main reasons as to why alcohol is commonly associated with a significant increase in weight gain is due to the fact that it has 7 calories per gram as opposed to 4 calories per gram for carbohydrate and protein. If we consider this purely from a numerical perspective, this information would seem to suggest that drinking alcohol is twice as fattening.
In reality however the truth is very different: the reason for this lies in the precise manner in which the alcohol is digested and metabolised within the body. Whereas the essential nutrients contained within food, i.e. proteins, fats and carbohydrates will be subject to a slow release process by the gastric enzymes; alcohol is metabolized almost immediately.
Specifically, alcohol is never made subject to the digestive process of the body and even where there is food consumed at the same time as the alcohol has been ingested the alcohol is given preferential treatment.
The now absorbed alcohol molecules will be synthesized into a pure energy source: acetate. Acetate is the first energy source that the body will cannibalize in order to effectively and properly fuel the various chemical reactions that take place within the body. Given the relatively small amounts of energy actually provided by the acetate in addition to its limited half-life, means that the chances of this energy source then being converted into adipose tissue is near negligible.
There is one important caveat to be aware with regards to the impact that alcohol can have upon the weight gain process and this is the fact that alcohol plays a pivotal role in the inhibition of the “lipid oxidation” process.
Lipid oxidation is the jargon term used to refer to the physiological process whereby lipid deposits present within the body are consumed as an energy source to support the chemical reactions throughout the body including essential respiratory functions, metabolism and circulation of blood. With this process impaired, this means that current fat deposits situated in the body remain static.
Hypothyroidism and weight gain
Hypothyroidism is a health condition that specifically afflicts the thyroid gland of the body, itself the part of the body that is responsible for the production of hormone known as thyroid. In essence then, Hypothyroidism is a deficiency of this particular hormone.
Two hormones produced in the thyroid gland are thyroxine and triiodothyronine and the two of these are directly responsible for regulating the basal metabolic rate (BMR) which pertains to the volume of energy that is consumed by animals during the course of a day. When the BMR becomes impaired then this means that the blood sugar level of the body is also reduced as a consequence; meaning that the consumption of foods that are high in saturated fats and refined sugar is increased.
Thyroxine and triiodothyronine also play an integral in the metabolism of the essential nutrients of the body.
Besides over eating and a poor diet where you consume more calories than you expend, there are many different causes of weight gain; therefore, vigilance is essential.