What Health Concerns Can Weight Loss Address?
Health Concerns & Conditions
Balanced metabolism and weight loss have been shown to be effective tools in the treatment and/or management of a number of serious issues, including Concussion, Type II Diabetes, Infertility, PCOS, Cancer, Mental Health, High Blood Pressure and Heart Disease, and of course, Weight Management & Obesity.
Concussion
It has been recognized that lifestyle choices have a major influence on cognitive health. Overeating, highly processed food, and sedentary behavior have been associated with a decline of mental well-being. Whereas calorie restriction, protein consumption and physical activity have been shown to improve brain function.
BDNF (Brain-derived neurotrophic factor) has been shown to be very important to healing the brain post concussion. How do we increase BDNF in the body? Calorie restriction, protein consumption, polyphenols (antioxidants found in plants), omega 3 fatty acids, and physical activity have all been shown to increase BDNF, along with better sleep and stress management. One research article stated that the lesions in the brain were healed and the spatial memory had increased.
The hard part of calorie-restrictive diets is that they are hard to maintain. We must also think about how much you should really be restricted by your diet? We also have to think about nutrition: we can intermittently fast and restrict calorie consumption with processed foods, but we won’t get the right amount of nutrition. We have to choose the right nutrition factors in order to heal. Metabolic balance is able to provide all three: nutrients, portion control and fasting breaks. All of these have shown to help the brain heal.
Diabetes
Diabetes is the loss of sugar metabolism, either from a low level of pancreas-produced insulin or the cells themselves not able to take in the sugar. The most common form of diabetes is type 2 diabetes. The rise of this disease over the last 2 decades has been astounding. As our society becomes more and more sedentary and as our intake of processed foods continues to increase, we will only see this problem get worse. According to the Mayo clinic website, there is no cure for diabetes, but with weight loss and exercise you can manage the symptoms. This is where Metabolic Balance comes into play. This program was designed to address metabolic syndrome, a cluster of biochemical and physiological abnormalities associated with the development of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes.
This program teaches you how to properly feed your body to obtain better health. This individualized program is full of foods that will give you the nutrients to produce the hormones and enzymes to balance your metabolism. This program will also show you which portion sizes of said foods are right for you. With this program, weight management and better health are easily achievable.
Research shows that a reduction in calories and/or intermittent fasting makes a change to diabetes. While Metabolic Balance isn’t a calorie restriction diet, it will teach you which portions will best serve you, and there are fasting breaks built into your plan. When you add all of this to the weight loss that going through the program tends to give you, you will have what you need to manage your diabetes.
Fertility
Obesity affects ovulation, response to fertility treatment, pregnancy rates and outcome.
“Weight loss in obese infertile women results in improvement in reproductive outcome for all forms of fertility treatment”. AM Clark et all Human Reproduction, Volume 13, Issue 6, June 1988, pages 1502-1505.
The subjects underwent a weekly programme aimed at lifestyle changes in relation to exercise and diet for 6 months; those that did not complete the 6 months were treated as a comparison group. Women in the study lost an average of 10.2 kg/m2, with 60 of the 67 anovulatory subjects resuming spontaneous ovulation, 52 achieving a pregnancy (18 spontaneously) and 45 a live birth. The miscarriage rate was 18%, compared to 75% for the same women prior to the programme. Psychometric measurements also improved. None of these changes occurred in the comparison group.
Research has shown that in 40 different studies, fertility for women can change when they undergo weight loss. Even for men! Those same studies show that weight loss can increase a man’s fertility. Obesity can contribute to an increased chance of erectile dysfunction, reduction in sperm quality, and changing sperm proteomes. An amount as small as 10lbs, gained or lost, can change fertility.
Literature has proven that Metabolic Balance has a 62.5% rate of 5% weight loss continued for a year and 31% having a 10% weight loss for over a year. Portion control, 8 strategies for lifestyle maintenance and fasting breaks are all part of this plan.
PCOS
John Hopkins Medicine defines Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) as a condition in which the ovaries produce an abnormal amount of androgens, male sex hormones that are usually present in women in small amounts. The name polycystic ovary syndrome describes the numerous small cysts (fluid-filled sacs) that form in the ovaries.
If you are experiencing it, you know it as a painful condition that causes you to gain weight, creates acne, gives unwanted hair growth, irregular periods and infertility, as well as headaches, baldness and metabolic syndrome. Most medical doctors say there is no cure, and that only management of the symptoms is possible. Medications can be given, but research shows that just a 5% weight loss can significantly change PCSO.
Research has also shown that lifestyle interventions have improved anxiety, depression, infertility, hair loss and overall physical well-being. “Weight Loss and Lowering Androgens Predict Improvements in Health-Related Quality of Life in Women With PCOS”. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.
The great thing about Metabolic Balance is that research shows that this program has a success rate where 62.5% of participants have kept 5% of weight loss for over a year and 31% kept 10% off after a year.
The program teaches you which foods serve your body for long term success, as you learn how to feed yourself to achieve lifelong health.
Cancer
We all know someone who has been affected by cancer. We all would like to avoid it. There are many things we can do to help reduce our risk. Overweight and obesity do play a role in rates of cancer.
Look at this information taken from the National Cancer Institute website.
- Endometrial cancer: Obese and overweight women are two to about four times as likely as normal-weight women to develop endometrial cancer (cancer of the lining of the uterus), and extremely obese women are about seven times as likely to develop the more common of the two main types of this cancer (7). The risk of endometrial cancer increases with increasing weight gain in adulthood, particularly among women who have never used menopausal hormone therapy (8).
- Esophageal adenocarcinoma: People who are overweight or obese are about twice as likely as normal-weight people to develop a type of esophageal cancer called esophageal adenocarcinoma, and people who are extremely obese are more than four times as likely (9).
- Gastric cardia cancer: People who are obese are nearly twice as likely as normal-weight people to develop cancer in the upper part of the stomach, that is, the part that is closest to the esophagus (10).
- Liver cancer: People who are overweight or obese are up to twice as likely as normal-weight people to develop liver cancer. The association between overweight/obesity and liver cancer is stronger in men than women (11, 12).
- Kidney cancer: People who are overweight or obese are nearly twice as likely as normal-weight people to develop renal cell cancer, the most common form of kidney cancer (13). The association of renal cell cancer with obesity is independent of its association with high blood pressure, a known risk factor for kidney cancer (14).
- Multiple myeloma: Compared with normal-weight individuals, overweight and obese individuals have a slight (10% to 20%) increase in the risk of developing multiple myeloma (15).
- Meningioma: The risk of this slow-growing brain tumor that arises in the membranes surrounding the brain and the spinal cord is increased by about 50% in people who are obese and about 20% in people who are overweight (16).
- Pancreatic cancer: People who are overweight or obese are about 1.5 times as likely to develop pancreatic cancer as normal-weight people (17).
- Colorectal cancer: People who are obese are slightly (about 30%) more likely to develop colorectal cancer than normal-weight people (18).
A higher BMI is associated with increased risks of colon and rectal cancers in both men and in women, but the increases are higher in men than in women (18).
- Gallbladder cancer: Compared with normal-weight people, people who are overweight have a slight (about 20%) increase in risk of gallbladder cancer, and people who are obese have a 60% increase in risk of gallbladder cancer (19, 20). The risk increase is greater in women than men.
- Breast cancer: Many studies have shown that, in postmenopausal women, a higher BMI is associated with a modest increase in risk of breast cancer. For example, a 5-unit increase in BMI is associated with a 12% increase in risk (21). Among postmenopausal women, those who are obese have a 20% to 40% increase in risk of developing breast cancer compared with normal-weight women (22). The higher risks are seen mainly in women who have never used menopausal hormone therapy and for tumors that express hormone receptors. Obesity is also a risk factor for breast cancer in men (23).
In premenopausal women, by contrast, overweight and obesity have been found to be associated with a 20% decreased risk of breast tumors that express hormone receptors (22).
- Ovarian cancer: Higher BMI is associated with a slight increase in the risk of ovarian cancer, particularly in women who have never used menopausal hormone therapy (24). For example, a 5-unit increase in BMI is associated with a 10% increase in risk among women who have never used menopausal hormone therapy (24).
- Thyroid cancer: Higher BMI (specifically, a 5-unit increase in BMI) is associated with a slight (10%) increase in the risk of thyroid cancer (25).
Research indicates that obesity may worsen several aspects of cancer survivorship, including quality of life, cancer recurrence, cancer progression, and prognosis (survival) (37, 38).
Metabolic Balance helps with weight management and is able keep weight at a good level long term.
Mental Health
We don’t realize how much our mental health is determined by what and how we eat.
Our brain chemicals called neurotransmitters are made of amino acids. These come from the proteins we eat. Each protein has a different number of amino acids. Eating a variety of proteins helps us to get different amino acids.
Our body takes the amino acids Isoleucine, leucine and valine, along with tyrosine and tryptophan, across the blood brain barrier. Then it takes methyl donors, iron, oxygen, magnesium and B vitamins to make neurotransmitters.
Things that cause issues with this happening is when insulin goes to high because it will reduce the amount of amino acid going to the brain. Metabolic Balance is all about the reduction of spikes in insulin. This allows for more amino acids to cross the blood brain barrier easier. Exercise also helps these amino acids to cross the barrier easier.
Metabolic Balance also has a wide variety of minerals and vitamins in the foods on the plan. This helps us to get the other nutrients necessary to make neurotransmitters.
By having that variety of foods and the blood work with your likes and dislikes you have more ability to make neurotransmitters and help with mood and mental health.
Heart Health
Weight loss can do wonders for your cardiovascular health. It can also help you avoid the conditions most commonly associated with being overweight, which tend to increase your risk for heart disease.
Losing weight can lower your blood pressure
If you’re overweight, your heart has to work extra hard to pump blood through your body. The harder your heart pumps, the higher your blood pressure, which can cause vision problems, stroke, kidney damage, and heart disease. Losing weight can lower your blood pressure.
Losing weight can lower your cholesterol
Obesity can lead to high cholesterol, and high cholesterol can lead to heart disease. Just being overweight doesn’t necessarily mean your cholesterol levels are high though because genes, hormones, and environmental circumstances all impact your cholesterol levels. However, if you’re overweight and you eat lots of unhealthy foods like processed meats, baked goods, and fast food, you could be at risk. Losing weight could lower your cholesterol, which helps balance the fats in your bloodstream, and helps your heart function normally.
Get Started30 Minute Discovery Call
Set up a free no obligation or expectation meeting. You will talk individually with one of our Certified Metabolic Balance Coaches, to discuss how Metabolic Balance is the right step for you. Whether you are looking to build your health and/or lose weight, bring your questions and we will be happy to discuss anything you are wondering about!