How to Talk to the Experts about Overeating
#FFS
For Fat’s Sake, Fat is Fuel!
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that overeating can make you put unwanted weight on, but a symptom of that extra weight could be insulin resistance and a plethora of other health issues. Insulin helps blood sugar enter the body's cells so it can be used for energy, but when you are insulin resistant, your body's cells don't respond properly to the insulin. Consequently, you feel completely drained of energy, making you constantly seek out that missing energy in food, entrapping you in a cycle of unconscious self harm
Consequences of Overeating
Insulin resistance and pre-diabetes is on the increase, and these conditions are predominantly down to choices we subconsciously or consciously make. Life can be stressful, and our increasing stress levels can determine the decisions we make about how we treat our bodies. Often insulin resistance manifests because people eat as a response to stress, so identifying what your triggers are, will help you to moderate and manage your response to those FFS moments. Reducing your stress is key because we don’t need food to increase our cortisol or blood sugar levels - your stressed body will do that for you, getting you ready to deal with whatever curve ball is being thrown.
When we respond to life with sugar, inflammation sores, blood vessels change, impacting the efficacy of our organs and blood flow, meaning nutrients just cannot get to where they want to go. Therefore, taking control of what and how we eat is critical, not only for how our bodies look, but how they thrive.
It’s time to hit the docs, if you're experiencing…
- An overwhelming thirst that you struggle to quench; you find yourself passing urine constantly; you're losing or gaining weight; you have noticed darkening skin folds; you’re exhausted all the time or you have recurrent infections. These are all signs that your blood sugar regulation is an issue.
- Weight gain can not only be a symptom of eating more, but also an underlying medical or hormonal issue. Find out if there is a family history of weight related medical complications.
- If you're putting weight on for no good reason, ask your doctor to review any medication that you may be taking.
- Ask your doctor to help you review your lifestyle habits to see if they can suggest any tweaks to support your health.
- Seek support if your mood is causing you to cave into the crave.
- Motivate yourself to reset by cluing up on risks associated with weight gain.
Interventions that are available to you…
- Drug therapy - liraglutide and orlistat have proven to be helpful.
- Support with eating disorders - warning signs that you may need to ask for this: concerns about your body shape; eating when stressed, anxious, or experiencing low mood; rapid weight loss or weight gain; low or high BMI; binge eating and then experiencing shame; forcing yourself to vomit after eating; taking laxatives to support expelling food; self harm; overeating.
- Just like Alcoholics Anonymous, there is Overeating Anonymous - a therapy group that will support you with your harmful eating habits, helping you to overcome them once and for all.
Medical Testing
- BMI and examination including blood pressure
- Thyroid baseline + adrenal baseline: TSH, T4, T3,
- Morning DHEA and cortisol
- Blood sugar response: HbA1c, fasting insulin and fasting glucose
- Lipidology: HDL, Chol, LDL, triglycerides
- Full blood count
- Liver function test
- Kidney function test
- Bone profile
- FSH, oestradiol, progesterone, testosterone
Integrative Testing
- Homocysteine, B12, Folate to look at methylation issues (the regulation of key neurotransmitters like serotonin)
- Lipidology - ApoE genotype, apolipoproteins (breakdown of cholesterol), TG, vLDL, LDL (Lipids have key functions in the body)
- Metabolism: all of the above plus fasting insulin and adiponectin
Hormone Tests
- Fatty acid composition - omega 3
- MicroNutrient status : Mg, Zinc, CU+ - an organic acid test is useful, or Genova NutEval
- Gut health: microbiome, leaky gut, parastes, funghi
- Comprehensive stool test
- DUTCH Complete - a complete evaluation of sex and adrenal hormones, including metabolites
Tech
- Continuous blood sugar monitor - FreeStyle Libre 2 wearable patch to help you identify what food spikes your insulin
- Ketometer - helps you understand when you’re in ketosis if you are intermittent fasting or following low carb, high fat and protein
- Health wearables such as Oura use body temp to track your cycle.
Hack Your Weight
If you believe that your weight gain is down to an underlying issue unknown to you, we would suggest that you make an appointment to talk to your doctor. Ensure that you go with all of your information and insist on a thorough investigation. For other tips and tricks to support with all things food and weight, have a peek at our dedicated Weight Loss Blogs, our 3 Day Reset and our review of the Hack your Hormones chapter ‘Why Can’t I Stop Eating?’
Of course testing can cost money, so a mood diary may be the cheapest way to track how food makes you feel immediately after and an hour later. Does the brain fog set in after chowing down? Do you feel satisfied, or are you searching for more? If so, your diet is not serving you and there is reason to reassess the choices you are making.
