Cortisol: Weight Gain Cause
Posted by amy in Fitness Attack, News
… only 24 days until the book release!
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CORTISOL CONFUSION
I’m sure you’ve all seen the various diet product commercials asserting that cortisol, a naturally occurring hormone that is produced as a result of stress, makes you fat. These products claim to eliminate cortisol and thereby contribute to weight loss.
I was intrigued, so I decided to do a little research on this concept and find out whether or not it was plausible. After a thorough investigation, I’m not even sure if cortisol can be linked to being overweight. Since I can’t verify that link, it leads me to believe that these products are questionable as well.
According to the Mayo Clinic, the amount of cortisol produced in a stressed person is not enough to cause weight gain unless there is some sort of associated medical condition. Other reliable sources mention that cortisol leads to belly fat.
So, I admit that I’m confused on whether or not cortisol contributes to your weight. Interestingly, I found a ton of studies about monitoring the cortisol levels of stressed children and other studies claiming that there may be a link between cortisol and depression.
My overall conclusion is that maintaining a consistently high level of cortisol is probably not good. Studies indicate that it may be linked to chronic stress (which can cause a whole host of problems), a decrease in the mental development of children, depression, and maybe even belly fat.
My suggestion: Do some research and talk to your doctor before drawing any conclusions for yourself.
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Amy Mac’s 2nd book Fitness Made Too Easy is going to be released on Halloween 2010! That’s right, 10/31/10! It will feature 101 easy tips to help you live a healthy and fit life! 91 of those tips will be released right here, starting today and going through the launch date. The last 10 tips are EXCLUSIVE to the book so if you want them, you’ll have to buy the book! We are also working on lots of bonus material to overload the book! Pre-order your copy now!