Gaining Weight Healthfully
Dr. Lance Levy, a Toronto medical nutrition specialist, says one of the following five health conditions may be lurking, untreated, behind how to gain weight - or just plain skinny.
* Mood Disorders- People suffering from major depression, anxiety disorder or chronic dysthmia (a very mild depression) turn to food as a diversion or for comfort. They're also likely too depressed to exercise.
* Chronic Tiredness Instead of downing jolt food that offers more pounds than pep, go to a health professional to determine what's causing the fatigue. It could be a medical condition such as anemia, hypothyroidism or sleep problems.
* Chronic Pain To take their minds off the constant pain of arthritis, headaches or back pain, some people head to the fridge in search of comfort food. Although exercise would help reduce the pain and control their weight, they're in too much pain for this to be an option. * Chronic Stomach Upset People who chronically suffer from indigestion, heartburn, queasiness or bloating will eat food to reduce the pain, at least temporarily. Instead of using food as a Band-Aid cure, get your stomach ailment treated. Binge Eating Disorder- (BED) Binge eating involves devouring food in a frenzied manner. Bingers don't stop until the food runs out, they fall asleep and they start to feel ill, they vomit or something or someone interrupts them. To be diagnosed with BED, you have typically hinged at least twice a week for at least a six-month period. Lighten up! Wonder why some of us yo-yo and others keep the pounds off? A joint study from the universities of Colorado and Pittsburgh found that people who lost more than 30 pounds and kept it off for at least a year: * Weigh them once a week. * Burn up to 2,800 calories a week exercising -- the equivalent of walking four miles a day which takes the average person an hour or, if running, 40 minutes. * Eat a low-fat diet and count their calories. In Canada last year, more than 400,000 prescriptions for appetite suppressants were dispensed. These pills increase levels of norepinephrine and/or dopamine in our brain, which make us feel too full for that second helping. Helen Ng, a pharmacist at Ontario Pharmacists Association Drug Information and Research Centre, highlights three new drugs that are being developed that take different approaches to promoting weight loss. Sibutramine slows down how quickly normal levels of norepinephrine, serotonin and dopamine (brain chemicals) drop after a meal. This, in turn, makes us feel fuller more quickly. Side effects: increased blood pressure and heart-rate, as well as headaches, insomnia, dry mouth and constipation. Orlistat inhibits the absorption of lipase (fat) into the intestines. Side effects: soft or liquid stools, fecal incontinence, abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting and flatulence. It also inhibits the absorption of vitamins D and E and beta-carotene. Beta3-agonists increase metabolic rate. Side effects: increased blood pressure and heart palpitations. Reach not for peppers or mustard if you want to bump up your metabolic rate. Or try a dose of evening primrose oil or walnuts -- they increase your serotonin level, which is one of the chemicals responsible for making you feel full.
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