When the Thyroid Interferes
You're humming along at a healthy weight when one day you notice that your favorite pair of jeans is snug. A visit to the bathroom scale reveals what you've been dreading: you've put on weight.
To top it off, you're tired. Your skin is dry, and you're sensitive to the cold. When you finally get to the doctor, you're relieved to learn that you have hypothyroidism. Good, you think. I'll take my thyroid pill, and my weight will go back to where it was.
For some people, taking thyroid hormone replacement for hypothyroidism makes all the difference. Their excess weight disappears, their energy levels are restored to normal, and they feel well again.
But for some the solution is not so simple. Maybe you lose a few pounds initially, only to stop after a while. Or maybe the medication doesn't make a difference in your weight at all, even as other symptoms let up. In any case, having hypothyroidism can make weight loss more difficult.
Diagnostic and Treatment Challenges
For some people, it can take months, even years, before they figure out that their thyroid is at the root of their weight gain. While they're in the process of uncovering the cause of the gain, they continue to battle an increase in appetite, a craving for high-fat foods, and a lack of energy for exercise. In the meantime, their weight creeps upward.
Alert
In rare cases, hyperthyroidism can actually cause you to gain weight. If an overactive thyroid is the culprit behind your extra pounds, you are probably responding to an increase in appetite and eating too much to compensate for your body's increased energy demands.
When you are finally diagnosed, time has passed, and you've gained that much more weight. Next comes the trial-and-error period, in which you try to find the proper dosage of thyroid hormone replacement. For some, it's a matter of a few weeks before you get it right. For others, it might take several months. But again, the passage of time often means gaining more weight while you're in the process of getting properly medicated.
Too Exhausted to Move
Hypothyroidism slows you down. Your entire metabolism moves at a slower rate, so you may have little energy for even life's most mundane tasks, like preparing a meal or paying your bills. Thyroid disease can also cause joint and muscle aches that inhibit you from exercising.
When you feel this tired and achy, the idea of exercising probably seems like a monumental effort that you'd just as soon abandon in favor of the couch. The less you do, the more tired you become. So now, not only is your BMR down, but you're also getting less exercise. All this slowing down causes you to expend fewer calories than you did when your thyroid was functioning properly.
Bad Cravings
When you're tired, your body naturally craves carbohydrates and foods that give you quick energy. Unfortunately, these energy-boosting foods tend to be high in calories and fat. Many people experience these same cravings when they're depressed, bored, or going through a stressful time. Women may experience these craving when they have PMS.
But rather than truly energize you, these foods give you only a temporary boost, followed by a crash that leaves you craving more carbs. This vicious cycle — compounded by your fatigue and lack of exercise — only worsens your weight gain.
Alert
Here's one way to tame a craving — stop banning the food from your diet. According to the American Dietetic Association, an overly restrictive diet can set you up for cravings that ultimately sabotage your efforts to eat better. Instead, practice eating small portions of the tempting food, even when you're trying to lose weight.
Other Symptoms and Diseases
Having a thyroid problem slows down your digestion and can make you constipated. It can also cause swelling, which means you'll retain water. Both constipation and swelling can make you heavier.
In addition, people who have a thyroid disorder often have other endocrine abnormalities that can cause weight gain or make it hard for you to lose weight. GH deficiency as part of a pituitary problem is one problem. You may also have a condition known as insulin resistance, in which body cells have become resistant to the insulin your pancreas produces. Insulin resistance is often a precursor to diabetes and can make it hard for you to lose weight. However, people who have uncontrolled diabetes actually lose weight.
If you are being treated for thyroid disease and have attained an optimal TSH level but still can't lose weight despite all the right lifestyle choices, you may want to talk to your doctor. Your physician may need to check whether you have another condition that is inhibiting your weight loss.
