Throughout our lives, our bodies change in many ways. From struggling senses to greying hair, our bodies evolve as we age and live in them, so we’ll look very different throughout each decade of our lives.
Among these changes, one that’s incredibly common is weight gain as we age, which can affect our self-esteem and general wellbeing. While increased weight is common as we get older, it can be prevented, and any unexpected weight gain shouldn’t be taken lightly or ignored.
So, if you gain weight, even a few extra pounds, then you need to be proactive and work to understand the cause. Once you know the reason for your weight gain, you can start to find the best way to deal with it and get your body back to optimal health and size.
If you’re not sure why you should care about any weight gain you experience, then keep reading. This blog post goes into detail about why you need to be proactive when dealing with unexpected weight gain and offers practical tips on how to handle the issue.
Even A Few Extra Pounds Can Be Bad For Your Health
If you’ve only gained a couple of extra pounds, it might be easy to think that they’re not that important. What’s a couple of pounds, after all? Everyone’s weight fluctuates at times, so you might not be too bothered about a little extra weight. However, even a minor weight increase can be bad for your health, as it can affect your metabolic rate, blood pressure, sugar levels and more. Also, while it might not have a long-term effect on your life, gaining extra weight can be a slippery slope, and it’s easy to quickly gain more pounds and move from slightly overweight to obese. Ignoring the problem can make it worse in the long run, making it harder for you to reduce your weight and get back to full health later. So, it’s worth being proactive and working to deal with the issue before it becomes a bigger problem.
It Could Be A Sign Of An Underactive Thyroid
Unexpected weight gain could be caused by a wide range of issues, usually lifestyle changes like eating more and exercising less frequently. However, if you’ve not noticed any changes in your lifestyle but you are experiencing mental health issues alongside your weight gain, then this could be a sign of an underactive thyroid. Your thyroid is an important, small gland in your throat that produces a lot of vital hormones. If your thyroid isn’t working efficiently, then it might stop producing the hormones that affect your metabolism, which will change how your body burns calories and fats. If you think you have an underactive thyroid, you need to go to your doctor to get a thyroid test to be sure. Bioma offers rapid turnaround private thyroid testing, so you can quickly get a diagnosis and understand what’s going on. Once you have a diagnosis, you can start exploring the best treatment options for you and understand how to adapt to this new situation.
Women Might Need To Look To Their Reproductive Health
An underactive thyroid isn’t the only medical reason that you might be gaining weight; it could also be down to your reproductive health if you’re a woman. Conditions such as Polycystic Ovary Syndrome or water retention bought on by menstrual issues, could be behind the weight gain. If you experience pain during your menstrual cycle, or any other reproductive issues, alongside your weight gain, then you also need to go straight to your doctor. They can check that there isn’t a reproductive issue that’s causing your weight gain. Also, as obvious as might seem, they can check for an unexpected pregnancy, which could cause weight gain, specifically around the stomach. Even if you’re using protection, sometimes pregnancy can occur by accident, so make sure that your doctor checks for this and considers reproductive issues that could be affecting your weight.
Weight Gain Could Be Caused By A Lack Of Sleep
Sleep is an important part of our lives, but it’s also one that’s often overlooked and can be disturbed a lot by the trapping of modern life, like technology and overworking. Lack of sleep can affect your body’s hormone production, particularly the ones that regulate your body’s hunger responses, so it can lead you to overeat by accident. If your body doesn’t let your brain know through its hormone production that you are full, then you will keep eating, and this will quickly lead to excess weight gain. So, if you’re struggling to sleep, then this could be behind your increased weight, and you should focus on getting more rest. To do this, you could try to make your bedroom a comfortable sanctuary by reducing noise pollution, using sleep accessories like weighted blankets, or getting the right mattress to ensure your comfort during the night. If your sleep issues continue, then you should visit your doctor to see if the problem is more serious and if there are any treatment options available. It might take time, but by fixing your sleep issues, you could improve your body’s hormone production and stop your weight gain problems. Getting more sleep will also help you to improve your general health, so it’s worth working on for anyone who is struggling to get enough rest.
Extra Weight Affects Your Mental Health
It’s not just your physical health that’s affected by your weight: there’s also a significant link between your weight and your mental wellbeing. Often, even seemingly minor weight gain can lead to mental health issues, including stress, anxiety and depression. It can also affect your self-esteem and confidence, particularly if the weight gain is noticeable and affects the way your clothes fit. If this happens, then you need to address the weight gain as soon as possible and work to find ways to adapt. This might include immediately adjusting your diet or working to do some simple, low-impact exercises to bring your weight back down. If you think that the issue is health-related, then you need to speak to your doctor and quickly work to get a diagnosis so that you can start to improve your mental and physical wellness. In some cases, your doctor might be able to offer you support for your mental health issues, to help you to become more motivated to take care of yourself and improve your lifestyle so you can lose the extra pounds you’ve gained recently.
How To Handle Unexpected Weight Gain
Spotting weight gain can be difficult unless you weigh yourself regularly, as you won’t even know what you weigh to begin with and how it’s changed. So if you’re trying to be healthier and manage your weight, then it might be worth investing in a good pair of bathroom scales. Even if you can see the changes in your body visually and through the fact that your clothes feel too tight, scales are still important. A pair of high-quality scales will help you to understand the extent of your weight gain and deal with it proactively. When you know how much extra weight you’re carrying, you can consider short-term lifestyle changes to help cope with it, such as adjusting your diet or doing more exercise. If the weight gain was sudden, accompanied by other symptoms, or you’re just unsure about what to do, you need to speak to your doctor immediately. They will be able to get to the root of the problem and help you find a solution that suits you.
