Unintentional weight loss occurs in many diseases and conditions, including some very serious diseases such as cancer, AIDS, and a variety of other diseases.
Poor management of type 1 diabetes mellitus, also known as insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM), leads to an excessive amount of glucose and an insufficient amount of insulin in the bloodstream. This triggers the release of triglycerides from adipose (fat) tissue and catabolism (breakdown) of amino acids in muscle tissue. This results in a loss of both fat and lean mass, leading to a significant reduction in total body weight. Untreated type 1 diabetes mellitus can produce weight loss.
In addition to weight loss due to a reduction in fat and lean mass, fluid loss can be triggered by illnesses such as diabetes, certain medications, lack of fluid intake or other factors. Fluid loss in addition to reduction in fat and lean mass exacerbates the risk for cachexia.[1]
Infections such as HIV may alter metabolism, leading to weight loss.[2]
Hormonal disruptions, such as an overactive thyroid (hyperthyroidism), may also exhibit as weight loss.[3]
One cutoff value of where unintentional weight loss is of significant concern is where there's a weight loss of more than 5% in the past month, or at least 10% during the last 6 months.[4]
[edit] Causes of unintentional weight loss
Starvation, a state of extreme hunger resulting from lack of essential nutrients over a prolonged period.
Cancer, a very common and sometimes fatal cause of unexplained (idiopathic) weight loss. About one-third of unintentional weight loss cases are secondary to malignancy. Cancers to suspect in patients with unexplained weight loss include gastrointestinal, prostate, hepatobillary (hepatocellular carcinoma, pancreatic cancer), ovarian, hematologic or lung malignancies should be considered in any patient presenting with unexplained weight loss.
AIDS can cause weight loss and should be suspected in high-risk individuals presenting with weight loss.
Gastrointestinal disorders are another common cause of unexplained weight loss - in fact they are the most common non-cancerous cause of idiopathic weight loss. Possible gastrointestinal etiologies of unexplained weight loss are celiac disease, peptic ulcer, inflammatory bowel disease (crohns disease and ulcerative colitis), pancreatitis
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
The Reason Why Most People Fail At Losing Weight
Why do so many people fail at losing weight? Is it because they are lazy? No. Is it because they are addicted to food? No. Is it because they aren’t good at exercising? No. Failure at weight loss stems from a few main factors:
•People don't truly understand the risks of being overweight. Why do most want to lose weight? Most would say to look better. Looking better certainly is a benefit of losing weight, but this shouldn’t be the sole reason to lose weight. There is a 1000 pound gorilla in the room and it’s often ignored. Being overweight for a long period of time kills thousands of people each year. Thousands of studies have shown and proven without any doubt that losing body fat will improve and lengthen your life. Knowing the dangers of being overweight is a tremendous motivator to not only lose fat, but to keep it off.
•People don't commit to permanent lifestyle changes. So many people think of a "diet" as something temporary. When they are on a "diet" they restrict themselves so much that they are miserable. Sooner or later failure is inevitable because of the unreasonable demands of most "diets." Some of these diets force you to only eat certain foods (e.g., no carbs, special soups etc…) You, like myself, have probably tried them before. The key to losing weight long term is to make gradual lifestyle changes you can stick to forever.
•Most individuals are not provided the truthful facts of losing weight and becoming healthier. With the conflicting information in the media, and all of the different lose weight quick fad diets, it’s understandable why so many people really don’t know the truth about losing fat and keeping it off long term.
•Most people don't understand they are constantly either gaining fat, or losing fat. There is no in-between. Some people justify binging or giving up because they hit a small road-block. This isn’t an all or nothing game. For example, when I was overweight, if I ate an unhealthy lunch, I’d go ahead and eat an unhealthy dinner since I already "messed up" the day. Or I’d say, I’ll start eating healthy on Monday since I’ve already eaten poorly this weekend. Every person at times eats too much. The successful people will not let a road bump completely derail their entire lifestyle change. If you are not implementing positive lifestyle changes and losing weight, you are gaining weight. Again, there is no "in-between."
•Most people don't realize what they consume each day. So many overweight people eat thousands of extra calories and fat without realizing it. It’s tough to know if you are gaining weight or losing weight each day unless you are keeping an eye on what you’re consuming.
Go Here to Learn More
•People don't truly understand the risks of being overweight. Why do most want to lose weight? Most would say to look better. Looking better certainly is a benefit of losing weight, but this shouldn’t be the sole reason to lose weight. There is a 1000 pound gorilla in the room and it’s often ignored. Being overweight for a long period of time kills thousands of people each year. Thousands of studies have shown and proven without any doubt that losing body fat will improve and lengthen your life. Knowing the dangers of being overweight is a tremendous motivator to not only lose fat, but to keep it off.
•People don't commit to permanent lifestyle changes. So many people think of a "diet" as something temporary. When they are on a "diet" they restrict themselves so much that they are miserable. Sooner or later failure is inevitable because of the unreasonable demands of most "diets." Some of these diets force you to only eat certain foods (e.g., no carbs, special soups etc…) You, like myself, have probably tried them before. The key to losing weight long term is to make gradual lifestyle changes you can stick to forever.
•Most individuals are not provided the truthful facts of losing weight and becoming healthier. With the conflicting information in the media, and all of the different lose weight quick fad diets, it’s understandable why so many people really don’t know the truth about losing fat and keeping it off long term.
•Most people don't understand they are constantly either gaining fat, or losing fat. There is no in-between. Some people justify binging or giving up because they hit a small road-block. This isn’t an all or nothing game. For example, when I was overweight, if I ate an unhealthy lunch, I’d go ahead and eat an unhealthy dinner since I already "messed up" the day. Or I’d say, I’ll start eating healthy on Monday since I’ve already eaten poorly this weekend. Every person at times eats too much. The successful people will not let a road bump completely derail their entire lifestyle change. If you are not implementing positive lifestyle changes and losing weight, you are gaining weight. Again, there is no "in-between."
•Most people don't realize what they consume each day. So many overweight people eat thousands of extra calories and fat without realizing it. It’s tough to know if you are gaining weight or losing weight each day unless you are keeping an eye on what you’re consuming.
Go Here to Learn More
Friday, June 10, 2011
Amazing Weight Loss: Woman Sheds 300 Pounds on Her Own
Shannon Davis lost 300 pounds all on her own, without surgery or a gimmicky diet. The Colorado woman said she did it by putting in the "time and effort." Davis is show here with a friend on a visit to the Rocky Mountains. (Courtesy Shannon Davis)
For every pound you want to drop, there's a diet plan, surgery, high-tech gadget or reality-TV show promising to get you to your goal, faster, cheaper and easier than the rest.
But what happens if you strip away the conveniences of today's high-tech, "we want it now" world, and try to lose the weight the hard way?
One Colorado woman did just that and succeeded, losing 300 pounds in nearly three years all on her own, with no surgery or gimmicky diet to take credit.
"There is no magic bullet," Shannon Davis told weight loss "You cannot lose weight without putting in the time and effort.
"It's not easy. It's simple sweat equity."
And sweat is certainly something that Davis -a 39-year-old master's degree student who also works full time and cares for her mother -- knows something about.
She is now committed to a seven-days-per-week workout routine that consists of an hour of cardio for four days and weightlifting with her trainer the other three.
That is a far cry from where Davis found herself three years ago -- a 589 pound woman unable to leave her Broomfield, Colo., home, much less jump on a treadmill.
"I was afraid to go out," Davis told "GMA." "I knew people would stare, judge me and make comments about me."
CLICK HERE for weight loss advice
Comments from her friends made her say enough was enough. They warned her she was going to die if she didn't change.
So she got off the couch and headed for a local gym, but couldn't even make it one step on the treadmill.
"There was no way I could walk on the treadmill at 589 pounds," she said.
But she kept moving.
"I'd go back to the pool and walk back-and-forth for an hour," Davis recalled of the first days in her weight-loss journey. "I didn't want people to see me. I wanted to be invisible.
"Things have changed a little bit," she said.
Gaining While Losing
Changes for Davis have come not just on the outside -- she now stands as literally half the woman she used to be -- but on the inside as well.
She no longer beats herself up over food cravings and has learned to enjoy an indulgence, in balance with her everyday, healthy diet.
"Everybody messes up," Davis said. "That's the thing about dieting everyone needs to learn: Everyone makes mistakes."
Davis says she follows a healthy diet of three simple meals per day, and stays satisfied with the reduced intake compared to her previous daily calories by focusing on the quality of the food, not the quantity.
"I eat quality food," she said. "Lots of greens, lots of vegetables, lots of lean meats. I love apples."
But that doesn't mean she's immune to cravings. She has learned, over a long, hard three years, how to handle them.
"If there's a cookie around, I want the cookie," Davis said of her favorite treat. "You have to forgive yourself and you have to indulge on occasion."
But indulging for Davis now means celebrating with friends, not food, something she would have never even considered three years ago when she spent her days alone in her home.
This weekend Davis will host a "300 Pound Down Party," bringing together the network of friends from across the country she's assembled along her journey down the scale.
Each friend is on a path similar to Davis', an element she sees as crucial to her weight-loss success.
But what happens if you strip away the conveniences of today's high-tech, "we want it now" world, and try to lose the weight the hard way?
One Colorado woman did just that and succeeded, losing 300 pounds in nearly three years all on her own, with no surgery or gimmicky diet to take credit.
"There is no magic bullet," Shannon Davis told weight loss "You cannot lose weight without putting in the time and effort.
"It's not easy. It's simple sweat equity."
And sweat is certainly something that Davis -a 39-year-old master's degree student who also works full time and cares for her mother -- knows something about.
She is now committed to a seven-days-per-week workout routine that consists of an hour of cardio for four days and weightlifting with her trainer the other three.
That is a far cry from where Davis found herself three years ago -- a 589 pound woman unable to leave her Broomfield, Colo., home, much less jump on a treadmill.
Courtesy Shannon Davis
Shannon Davis lost 300 pounds all on her own,..
CLICK HERE for weight loss advice
Comments from her friends made her say enough was enough. They warned her she was going to die if she didn't change.
So she got off the couch and headed for a local gym, but couldn't even make it one step on the treadmill.
"There was no way I could walk on the treadmill at 589 pounds," she said.
But she kept moving.
"I'd go back to the pool and walk back-and-forth for an hour," Davis recalled of the first days in her weight-loss journey. "I didn't want people to see me. I wanted to be invisible.
"Things have changed a little bit," she said.
Gaining While Losing
Changes for Davis have come not just on the outside -- she now stands as literally half the woman she used to be -- but on the inside as well.
She no longer beats herself up over food cravings and has learned to enjoy an indulgence, in balance with her everyday, healthy diet.
"Everybody messes up," Davis said. "That's the thing about dieting everyone needs to learn: Everyone makes mistakes."
Davis says she follows a healthy diet of three simple meals per day, and stays satisfied with the reduced intake compared to her previous daily calories by focusing on the quality of the food, not the quantity.
"I eat quality food," she said. "Lots of greens, lots of vegetables, lots of lean meats. I love apples."
But that doesn't mean she's immune to cravings. She has learned, over a long, hard three years, how to handle them.
"If there's a cookie around, I want the cookie," Davis said of her favorite treat. "You have to forgive yourself and you have to indulge on occasion."
But indulging for Davis now means celebrating with friends, not food, something she would have never even considered three years ago when she spent her days alone in her home.
This weekend Davis will host a "300 Pound Down Party," bringing together the network of friends from across the country she's assembled along her journey down the scale.
Each friend is on a path similar to Davis', an element she sees as crucial to her weight-loss success.
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