Hormones tell the systems of the body how to act. From regulating growth and development to regulating metabolism, from preparing the body for birth to preparing the body to “fight a tiger,” hormones are large and in charge! Nowhere is this more evident than in our metabolism. Hormones play a significant role in body weight, working together to regulate appetite, satiety, speed of metabolism and weight gain.
Insulin is secreted by the pancreas in small amounts throughout the day and in larger amounts after meals. It transfers glucose from food into muscle, liver, and fat cells to use as energy or storage. Insulin resistance causes cells to stop “listening” to insulin, resulting in high blood sugar that has been linked to obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease. To improve insulin resistance exercise regularly, sleep longer and better, ingest more omega-3 fats, (check out EPA/DHA Omega 3) reduce/eliminate all processed foods, adopting a Mediterranean diet which includes healthy fats from fish, olives, avocado, etc. while excluding inflammatory seed oils. Adding intermittent fasting where you close your “eating window” to about 7-8 hours daily, will get you out of insulin resistance more quickly.
Leptin tells your brain that you are full. Leptin resistance happens when the message to stop eating doesn’t reach your brain. Eventually, no matter how disciplined you are, you will cave and overeat. The direct cause of leptin resistance is ambiguous, but it seems to be connected to systemic inflammation in the body, gene mutations, or excessive leptin production which can happen if you are overweight. To lower leptin levels you should maintain a healthy body weight, improve your sleep quality and quantity, (Sleep MAXX) and exercise regularly.
Ghrelin increases your appetite by sending messages to your brain that your stomach needs food. Ghrelin levels are highest just before eating and lowest just after eating. Research shows that obese people have lower ghrelin levels, but are more sensitive to its effects. Lowering ghrelin will help if you always feel hungry. One way to lower ghrelin is to eat smaller meals more often. Another is to practice intermittent fasting combined with a 33 hour fast once a week. Hunger is not just a function of having not eaten. Instead, it’s often a function of too much ghrelin. Heal your adrenals and manage stress. I love this product to help with adrenal issues and stress hormones: Stress MAXX
Cortisol is released from the adrenal glands in the body’s attempt to return to homeostasis. High levels of cortisol can cause heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, sleep disturbances, and weight gain. Face it. If your body wakes up thinking you must fight a tiger every day, it’s going to pull sugar stores up from the liver creating high blood sugar. Cortisol is produced in excess when we don’t sleep well. Conversely, we don’t sleep well when we are in a stress state where cortisol is king. To optimize cortisol, take adaptogenic herbs (check out Ashwagandha), practicing mindfulness, exercise regularly, get more and better sleep, eat a healthful diet high protein and healthy fat—consuming only those carbohydrates that have fiber, like fruits and vegetables.
Neuropeptide Y is produced by the cells in your brain and nervous system. Stimulating appetite and decreasing energy expenditure in response to fasting or stress, it is active in fat tissue and may increase fat—especially belly fat. Regular exercise may decrease NPY levels, and avoiding high fat and high sugar intake helps as well.
GLP-1 is produced in the gut when food enters your intestines. It plays a major role in keeping your blood sugar levels stable and making you feel full. Tips to keep GLP-1 levels high include eating ½ your body weight in grams of protein, and taking specific probiotics that increase this hormone. I like this probiotic: Daily Probiotic
Cholecystokinin is another fullness hormone produced after a meal. Important for energy production, protein synthesis, and digestion, it also increases the release of leptin. People with obesity may have a reduced sensitivity to CCK which may lead to chronic overeating.
Peptide YY is a gut hormone that decreases appetite. Levels may be lower in people with obesity which may lead to greater appetite and overeating. To increase PYY levels, eat a Paleo diet that has ample protein, fruits, and veggies. Staying active physically is important as well.
The more processed our diets have become, the more we struggle with obesity. Recent research has led to the use of drugs like Ozempic, Semaglutide, and Tirzepatide to lose weight quickly by slowing the emptying of the stomach, and by increasing GLP-1 in the body. Unfortunately, we don’t know the long-term effects of these drugs, so it’s always better to take the long road home to weight loss by reducing cortisol, shoring up nutrient sufficiency, dropping processed foods, increasing protein and healthy fat, sleeping better, and exercising more.