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But experts are of the opinion
that medication induced weight gain is more dangerous due to
something called metabolic syndrome. To know if you are at
risk from metabolic syndrome, you have to check if your
fasting blood glucose greater than 110 (mg/dL), fasting
triglycerides are greater than 150, HDL cholesterol (the good
one) is less than 50, waist circumference (measured around the
widest part) greater than 88 centimeters / 34.5 inches and
blood pressure greater than 135/85.
In the mental health context,
metabolic syndrome is characterized by major weight gain for
no apparent reason i.e. there has been no increase in calorie
intake nor decrease in exercise, in the context of stress or
perimenopausal age range i.e. 40-50 for most women, with blood
pressure increases, triglyceride increases, "central
adiposity” or fat accumulation in the abdomen and “insulin
resistance” due to increased blood glucose and polycystic
ovarian syndrome. This syndrome is important in the context of
mental health due to a variety of reasons namely it can cause
fluctuations in mood and anxiety, and worsen Biopolar II. It
is certain that this syndrome is caused by many medications
used to treat mood and anxiety symptoms. It is possible that
treating this syndrome can lead to weight loss in some
quarters.
According to research, if you are a middle aged woman and
weigh 12 to 15 pounds than you did at the age of 18, you are
25% more at risk from heart disease than those women who have
gained less than 11 pounds. Naturally, the more the number of
pounds you gain, the more is the risk from heart disease
therefore if a middle aged woman weighs 18 to 24 pounds more
than what she did aged 18, she is 65% more at risk from heart
disease and gaining 40 pounds triples the risk of heart
disease. If you as a woman have gained less than 11 pounds
since the age of 18, you are at minimal risk from heart
disease and have a typical “Body mass index” (BMI) of less
than 21. Though it is an acceptable fact that death rates are
the highest in obese people, interestingly research also
suggests that death rates are also very high in very thin
people; it is only those with average weight who are least
susceptible to risk and in fact it is considered healthy to
gain a few pounds as you grow older.
If you have gained a large amount of weight as an adult then,
trying to return to your weight as a young person is almost
always an uphill and sometimes impossible task because the
weight that you have put on is not just fat but greater muscle
mass and density which is needed to carry this excess weight.
The best path to loose weight or maintain a stable weight is
to revamp your lifestyle, eat fewer calories and exercise more
which basically just common sense. This may not drastically
alter your weight and bring you down to your weight as a
youth, it will most certainly put you at a reduced risk from
heart disease which in turn will improve your blood pressure
and glucose tolerance.
Tough fad diets may help in the desired weight loss, they
deprive the body of the essential nutrients and cause serious
health complications.
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