Your endocrine system is comprised of several glands which
direct activities within the body by releasing chemical messengers, called
hormones, into the bloodstream. The target
cells for each hormone require the presence of that specific hormone in order to
carry out their own functions.
Overweight individuals may have one or both of the following
conditions:
1.
Endocrine Gland Dysfunction - The glands themselves aren’t functioning right, perhaps
necessary coenzymes aren’t being supplied or tissue has been damaged from
inflammation. This causes your endocrine
glands to secrete too much or too little of certain hormones.
2. Target Cell
Hyper or Hyposensitivity - The lines of communication in your endocrine
system aren’t functioning right. Tissues
and organs which are supposed to
respond to your hormones are either responding too well or not well at
all. This sends confusing signals to
your endocrine glands that now think they need to stop sending hormones out or
else send out a lot more.
Either of these conditions results in levels of hormones
that are out of balance, and can be the original cause of weight gain or the unfortunate
result of excess weight. In either case,
the logical step toward optimal health is to assist our bodies in regaining a
balanced, normally-functioning endocrine system.
When most of us think of “correcting hormonal imbalances" we
think of HRT- Hormone Replacement Therapy in postmenopausal women. Yet the hormones used in HRT make up only a
small percentage of the more than fifty hormones which regulate our mood, our
metabolism, our sexual function, our growth and development, and other
functions.
Research into the hormones involved in obesity is actively
underway, but there is currently no HRT for the hormone imbalances that are
causing weight gain, water retention, and difficult weight loss in your
body. Yet, the absence of this treatment
option may not be as disheartening as it seems.
HRT for obesity could likely prove to be a very imperfect
solution to these hormonal issues. Crucial
lessons can be learned from postmenopausal HRT which has been fraught with
difficulties, being largely ineffective or causing highly undesirable side
effects, and in some women even promoting the development of certain cancers.
Research and clinical experience is showing that we cannot
apply one general hormonal treatment to all people and expect it to work for
each of them. In response to these
difficulties, the current trend in HRT is to treat women with individualized, or
“bio-identical", hormones based on an analysis of the specific hormonal
imbalances in their system.
However, the specific imbalances in each person changes over
the course of treatment requiring frequent re-evaluation of the situation and
alteration of the HRT concentrations and dosages. Therefore, the effectiveness of even
individualized HRT is questionable in
light of the expense, as well as physical and mental stress, involved with the
treatment.
The complications of postmenopausal
HRT reveal the unlikelihood of truly successful “obesity HRT". Allowing doctors to prescribe large doses of
hormones or even treating ourselves with phytohormones may be largely
ineffective, dangerous, or both, and is obviously not the best option.
The absolute best option is for our bodies to regain their
own regulatory control of hormone production and to rebalance their own
cellular sensitivity to levels of circulating hormones. Ideally, weight loss should be achieved by
safely and naturally assisting our body in regaining a state of optimal health.
A well-balanced diet, regular exercise and adequate stress
control are weight loss basics that have a huge healthy impact on your
endocrine system. Other natural
approaches include iodine supplementation if you suspect subclinical hypothyroidism
or adrenal gland or licorice supplementation if you suspect low-functioning
adrenals. Both endocrine conditions are
commonly associated with obesity.
Another natural, useful approach is homeopathy. This healing modality is gaining popularity
because of its gentle, restorative capabilities. The following list contains official
homeopathic hormones and glandulars. These
ingredients should be included in homeopathic weight
control and appetite
control products that are designed to correct endocrine dysregulation and
hormonal imbalance.
Thyroidinum (Thyroid) : Indicated for excessive obesity. Thyroidinum provides a general regulation of
carbohydrate, protein, and fat metabolism through its influence over the organs
of nutrition, growth, and development.
Effective relief for metabolic disorders, muscular weakness, and sugar
cravings.
ACTH (Adrenocorticotropin
Hormone) : Indicated for appetite irregularities,
excessive mental and physical sluggishness in the morning, hypothyroidism, and
excessive thirst, increased excretion of calcium and phosphorous, muscular
weakness, and swelling and edema of the extremities.
Cortisone: Indicated for fat and water retention,
tendency to hypothyroidism, and rhythmic disorders of several glands:
pituitary, adrenal, pancreas. For
individuals with a tendency to obesity with retention of water, dry skin and
mucous membranes, acne of the face, shoulders, and back, diminished sexual
desire, and/or restless legs.
Hypothalamus: Indicated
for the oversensitive individual with depression linked to stress or physical
issues. This remedy is effective in issues of thyroid malfunction, water
retention, and obesity. Also indicated
for disturbances of the appetite and circulatory malfunction.
Adrenalinum (Adrenaline) : For relief of increased appetite, apathy
and lack of ambition, loss of strength, general marked anemia, and belching
after meals.
Pituitarum (Pituitary
Gland) :
Stimulates muscular activity, regulates reabsorption of water at the
kidneys, treats atrophy of the breasts, and alleviates gallbladder inflammation
[often linked with obesity]. Effective in the relief of back and neck ache,
night time anxiety, difficult mental concentration and obsessive thoughts.
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