Leptin Resistance Symptoms

Leptin is a satiety hormone secreted by fat cells and it manages the fat metabolism by telling the hypothalamus in the brain about the fat storage in the body. It influences the hunger, feeling of abdominal fullness and energy expenditures.

Leptin resistance is a similar thing that occurs in diabetes mellitus and known as insulin resistance.

As insulin controls the glucose levels in the body and helps in cellular metabolism. The leptin is also a kind of hormone, which plays a very important role in fat metabolism in the body and ultimately controls the body weight.

Resistance to the effects of leptin hormone is called leptin resistance and is said to be the main cause of fat gain in our body.

Leptin Resistance Symptoms

The symptoms of leptin resistance are given here under:

1. Quickly gain weight
2. Fat accumulation around the abdomen
3. Hunger or Constantly feeling hungry
4. Feeling of inability to lose weight
5. Hyperphagia – chronic excessive eating
6. Sub-conscious overeating
7. Impaired fat metabolism
8. Difficult to lose weight with dieting
9. Regular exercises are not helping to losing weight
10. You have tried many methods to lose weight, but after some days, you regain the previous weight.
11. Food craving
12. High Cholesterol levels associated with obesity
13. High blood pressure (hypertension) linked with obesity
14. High levels of triglycerides
15. If you are trying to lose the weight, but do not achieve the desire results with reduction of calories or using your will power, it might be due to leptin resistance.
16. Infertility – unable to conceive children

Symptoms of leptin resistance in children

• Overeating
• Abnormal eating behaviors
• Hoarding food
• Overweight or obese (Obesity starts in early childhood)
• Frequent chest infections
• Delayed physical development or delayed puberty

Biological abnormality and subconscious excessive eating

Obese people have very high amount of leptin because of the amount of fat stored in their body’s fat cells. Therefore, these people should not be eating at all because they have enough fat cells but the brain stops functioning in these cases and do not send signals that there is enough fat floating in body and we do not need more.

This resistance is called leptin resistance and is main reason behind the biological abnormality in obese people.

Therefore, when our brain does not receive leptin signals it thinks that we are starving and we eat more even though we already have enough.

So our physiology and behavior change in order to attain more. We start eating more food and we start burning fewer calories thinking we need to conserve energy. This makes us lazier.

This process may occur subconsciously and some people even may not know about their excessive eating behaviors.

Is really leptin resistance responsible for weight gain?

Yes, it may be possible that it will cause faulty signals to the brain about the fat storage in the body. However, it may be a responsible factor for obesity, but the actual cause is subconscious excessive eating and lack of exercises or physical work.

How to combat with leptin resistance

For combating with leptin resistance, first know your symptoms listed above if you have any. The first step to toward the treatment of the leptin resistance is to know about the excessive eating associated with your weight gain. Here are some tips that may help you.

1. Just increase exercises and take interest in more physical work.
2. Some research studies suggest protein rich diet may increase sensitivity of the leptin hormone. But I suggest not using synthetic or packed protein power. It may cause increase in uric acid in obese people. You can opt oatmeal and peanut butter, as a natural protein sources.
3. Take at least 7 to 8 hours sleep. It will help to decrease the leptin resistance.
4. Some people suggest taking less carbs in the food as a main part of leptin diet, but you should choose more complex carbs and fibers rich food in your diet. Do not restrict carbs intake completely. A balanced diet is required for an optimum health.
5. Take less processed foods or eat raw fruits or vegetables. Highly processed foods increase the inflammation in the body and results in leptin as well as insulin resistance in the body.

Ayurvedic Tips for reducing leptin resistance

Ayurveda is an ancient health science useful in treating a wide range of problems including diabetes mellitus and leptin resistance as well. However, leptin resistance is not explained in the ayurveda, but the symptoms appeared in leptin deficiency or leptin resistance is explained in the ancient texts on obesity. The following ayurvedic tips can helps to reduce leptin resistance:

1. Do not drink water at least one hour before the meal and 3 hours after the meal.
2. Drink 8 to 12 glasses of water daily.
3. Do not sleep immediately after dinner. Eat your dinner 3 hours before sleeping.
4. Drink a cup of warm water before sleeping.
5. Eat natural organic foods and avoid industrial, junk of fast foods.
6. Stay close to the nature and avoid artificial and unproven supplements.

Herbs for leptin resistance treatment

The following herbal formula is effective in the leptin resistance and losing weight.

This formulation is very effective to increase the leptin sensitivity and reducing fat accumulation in the body.