Episode 170: Estrogen's Influence on Weight and Well-Being

[00:00:00] Welcome back to the Back on Track Achieving Healthy Weight Loss, where I help you get on track and stay on track with your weight loss journey. I'm your host, Dr. Alicia Shelly. So let's get started.

[00:00:27] Welcome to the Back on Track Achieving Healthy Weight Loss podcast. I'm your host, Dr. Alicia Shelly.

[00:00:33] Have you ever wondered why your weight seems to fluctuate even when your routine stays the same? The secret might lie in a surprising culprit, estrogen.

[00:00:46] This powerful hormone not only regulates your reproductive system, but it also plays a minor role in how your body stores fat and manages hunger and burns calories.

[00:00:59] So in today's episode, we're going to dive in to how estrogen influences your weight and how you can stay in balance.

[00:01:09] Now, first, what exactly is estrogen?

[00:01:13] So estrogen is a hormone that is primarily responsible for the development and regulation of the female reproductive system.

[00:01:20] And it helps with the development of the secondary sexual characteristics like breast development and the menstrual cycle.

[00:01:31] Estrogen is present in both men and women. So it's in both men and women, but it is higher in women and mainly produced in the ovaries.

[00:01:41] However, it is produced in small quantities by the adrenal glands and fat tissue.

[00:01:46] Now, first, we're going to talk about how estrogen affects women.

[00:01:50] And then toward the end, we're going to talk about how it can affect men.

[00:01:54] Now, estrogen plays a crucial role in many bodily functions.

[00:01:58] Like I mentioned, the reproductive health, regulating the menstrual cycle, ovulation, pregnancy.

[00:02:04] But you may not realize that it also plays a role in bone health.

[00:02:08] It helps with maintaining bone density and preventing bone loss.

[00:02:13] And if bone loss gets too worse, it can lead to osteoporosis.

[00:02:18] Estrogen also helps with cardiovascular health, supporting healthy cholesterol levels and protecting blood vessels.

[00:02:25] And this is where it kind of affects your weight and how you feel.

[00:02:29] Estrogen can influence fat distribution.

[00:02:32] It influences how and where the body stores fat, which can affect weight and body composition.

[00:02:40] And we'll talk a little bit more in depth about this.

[00:02:44] Also, estrogen can contribute to the elasticity and hydration of the skin, as well as growth of hair.

[00:02:50] Now, throughout a woman's life, estrogen fluctuates.

[00:02:54] It starts to increase or surge during puberty, where it triggers the breast development, the widening of the hips and the start of menstruation.

[00:03:04] And during the reproductive years, estrogen levels fluctuate following a cyclical pattern each month, which leads to your menstrual cycle.

[00:03:12] As weekends, women can attest some days you can just feel just the change as your cycles continue to go each month.

[00:03:20] But which is interestingly enough, during pregnancy, estrogen levels actually surge dramatically.

[00:03:27] And that's because the placenta actually starts to create some of that estrogen getting the baby ready to be born.

[00:03:33] So as women approach perimenopause, and this is in their late 30s, 40s, and maybe even 50s, estrogen begins to fluctuate irregularly.

[00:03:45] And estrogen levels are unpredictable at this point, and they can often lead to irregular menstrual cycles.

[00:03:51] So during that perimenopausal area, it's very common for women to skip cycles.

[00:03:56] They may go two to three months without a cycle, and you know you hit menopause when you've gone at least 12 months without a cycle.

[00:04:04] And during this time, this perimenopausal time, you can start to have not only irregular menstrual cycles, but symptoms like hot flashes, mood swings, night sweats, changes in weight distribution.

[00:04:16] You notice that you're getting more fat distributed in your stomach and not your hips.

[00:04:20] And that's just with that perimenopause region or area or age range, shall we say.

[00:04:26] But after menopause, estrogen levels actually start to decrease and remain low, but stable.

[00:04:33] And you still have a small amount of estrogen that still produces from fat tissues and adrenal glands.

[00:04:40] Now, let's talk about some of these estrogen effects.

[00:04:43] Now, I mentioned earlier, estrogen affects fat distribution.

[00:04:47] Estrogen determines where the fat is stored.

[00:04:51] In women, higher estrogen levels promote the storage of fat in areas like your hips, thighs, and buttocks, and contributing to that classic pear-shaped body.

[00:05:02] This pattern of fat storage is thought to be protected, particularly during childbearing years.

[00:05:07] However, as the estrogen levels decline, especially during menopause, fat tends to redistribute to the abdomen, increasing the risk of visceral fat, which is linked to metabolic disorders, cardiovascular health.

[00:05:23] Women are at increased risk of heart attacks due to this visceral fat.

[00:05:27] And this is where I get the biggest complaint with my patients, because they're like, I can't get rid of this stomach.

[00:05:33] I didn't have this stomach before.

[00:05:35] And a lot of that is due to the fact of the estrogen levels declining.

[00:05:39] Now let's talk about how estrogen impacts metabolism.

[00:05:42] So it affects your metabolic rate, which is the amount of energy your body uses to maintain basic functions.

[00:05:50] Higher energy levels are associated with a higher metabolic rate, meaning the body burns more calories at rest.

[00:05:57] As estrogen decreases, such as during menopause, metabolism starts to slow down, leading to potential weight gain, even without changes in diet or activity levels.

[00:06:06] I have many women who are postmenopausal who are like, I've changed nothing in my diet.

[00:06:12] I exercise, I eat right, and I still gain weight.

[00:06:16] This may be because of the estrogen decreasing.

[00:06:19] Next, let's talk about the regulation of appetite.

[00:06:22] So estrogen interacts with hormones that control hunger and fullness, such as leptin, which is the hormone that allows you to feel full and satisfied.

[00:06:32] And ghrelin, which is the hunger hormone, which tells you when it's high, you feel hungry.

[00:06:38] Now we talked about these two hormones last week and just how they affect your weight.

[00:06:43] So for more information, go and see our earlier episodes on that.

[00:06:47] Now, estrogen helps increases the sensitivity to leptin, meaning that the hormone signals that you're full.

[00:06:57] So since it makes the body feel more full, lower levels of estrogen can lead to reduction of that sensitivity, which leads to increased hunger and cravings, particularly for that high fat, high sugar foods, where you're having a little bit more of those cravings, especially with lower estrogen.

[00:07:17] Now, the other function of estrogen is that it can help with maintaining insulin sensitivity.

[00:07:24] We also talked about insulin in our early previous episodes.

[00:07:28] Just for a recap, insulin is important in the regulation of blood sugar.

[00:07:33] And what happens is that once you eat, insulin is released by the pancreas and it helps the body to be more receptive to the glucose or sugar, blood sugar that's in the blood.

[00:07:43] And so it utilizes that blood sugar for energy when insulin is responded to or the body is more sensitive to insulin.

[00:07:52] However, when estrogen levels drop, insulin sensitivity may decrease, making it easier for your body to want to store fat, particularly in the abdominal area.

[00:08:04] This shift increases the risk of developing more insulin resistance and metabolic disorders like type 2 diabetes.

[00:08:12] And then, like I said, I go into a lot more detail about insulin in previous episodes.

[00:08:20] Estrogen also promotes fat breakdown or lipolysis is the medical name, which allows the body to use the store fat for energy more efficiently.

[00:08:29] But when you have your lower estrogen levels, that fat breakdown slows down, which could lead to more increased fat storage and weight gain.

[00:08:39] And as we see in our stomach.

[00:08:43] Now, the last function of estrogen is that it helps with muscle mass.

[00:08:48] Now, estrogen is not the primary hormone responsible for building muscle mass, but it does play a crucial role in muscle maintenance, repair and protection.

[00:08:57] Estrogen supports muscle recovery after exercise.

[00:09:01] Because when we do exercise, sometimes the muscle does break down and it just recovers.

[00:09:05] And it supports that.

[00:09:07] Also, it reduces inflammation in the muscles and enhances growth hormone production and prevents muscle atrophy.

[00:09:14] As estrogen levels decline, particularly during menopause, women are at greater risk of losing muscle mass and strength.

[00:09:22] Therefore, it is important, especially as we age, that we are engaging in regular strength training activities to help with preserving our muscle mass and overall physical function.

[00:09:33] Now, let's switch gears.

[00:09:35] We talked a lot about estrogen in women, but let's talk about how estrogen plays a role in men.

[00:09:41] Now, as we all know, estrogen is not as very low as far as at low levels in men, but it also is important.

[00:09:49] So when we look at the release of estrogen, usually during puberty, testosterone levels will rise, but also estrogen levels rise as well.

[00:09:58] The reason being that it helps with bone maturation, growth and development of the bone.

[00:10:03] And so it kind of helps as the estrogen levels are rising during puberty, estrogen levels rise too to help with improving the bone health.

[00:10:12] Now, during adulthood, though, estrogen in men are pretty stable at small amounts.

[00:10:17] But that small amount is still, you know, small but mighty.

[00:10:21] It supports bone density, libido, cognitive function and cardiovascular health.

[00:10:26] As the man ages and his testosterone levels start to decline, which is called andropause, estrogen can remain stable.

[00:10:35] However, there are certain conditions where estrogen levels can increase in men, which can lead to further health conditions.

[00:10:42] So obesity, having extra weight can increase your estrogen levels.

[00:10:47] Higher body fat leads to increased conversions from testosterone to estrogen.

[00:10:52] And this can contribute to issues like insulin resistance, cardiovascular disease and decreased muscle mass.

[00:10:59] Also, conditions like liver cirrhosis can impair the metabolism of estrogen, which leads to elevated levels in the blood.

[00:11:09] Hormonal imbalances such as low testosterone or hypogonadism, it can alter the balance of estrogen and testosterone,

[00:11:18] leading to excess estrogen levels relative to testosterone, which can also affect reproductive health and overall well-being.

[00:11:26] Certain medications, such as medications used to treat prostate cancer, can also increase estrogen levels as a side effect.

[00:11:34] Now, what does elevated estrogen levels cause in men?

[00:11:40] Well, elevated estrogen levels in men can cause weight gain.

[00:11:45] So higher levels in aging men can cause fat accumulation, especially around the abdomen.

[00:11:52] Also, increased estrogen levels can contribute to increased breast tissue in both breasts, called gynecomastia, which can be a little unsettling,

[00:12:04] especially if a man's like, you notice that his breast tissue is getting larger.

[00:12:07] Also, higher levels of estrogen can lead to reduced libido due to an imbalance between testosterone and estrogen,

[00:12:16] which can lower sexual desire and energy levels.

[00:12:20] Also, bone health.

[00:12:21] While estrogen helps maintain bone density, the decline in testosterone with aging men can cause reduced bone strength,

[00:12:29] potentially leading to osteoporosis.

[00:12:31] Also, elevated estrogen and declining testosterone levels can affect mood and cognitive function,

[00:12:39] which can lead to feelings of fatigue or depression.

[00:12:42] So in summary, for women, it's better if their estrogen levels are higher.

[00:12:47] And then as they age, the estrogen levels decrease.

[00:12:50] But in men, it is bad if their estrogen levels are high.

[00:12:54] We want their estrogen levels to be low.

[00:12:56] I mean, testosterone levels to be high.

[00:12:58] So it's so interesting how the body works and how the fact that, you know,

[00:13:04] this one little hormone estrogen can have so much impact in the body,

[00:13:10] both for women and men and can affect fat distribution and weight gain.

[00:13:16] Now, let's talk about some practical tips that you can use to help managing weight when you're having estrogen changes.

[00:13:23] So the first thing is exercise.

[00:13:25] So promoting and prioritizing strength training is in cardiovascular activities will help with boosting your metabolism,

[00:13:33] but then also help with adding protection, especially that strength training to help with bone health for both men and women and muscle mass as well.

[00:13:42] So it's important to make sure that you prioritize strength training.

[00:13:44] Also for your nutrition, it's important for you to focus on a balanced diet with lean proteins, healthy fats and fiber to help balance your blood sugar levels and support your metabolism.

[00:13:57] Also making sure you're reducing your stress.

[00:14:00] Because like we said in an earlier episode about cortisol, chronic stress can affect your estrogen levels and contribute to weight gain.

[00:14:08] And then of course, it's important to make sure you're getting a good night's rest because sleep helps with hormonal regulation, appetite and weight.

[00:14:16] So in summary, estrogen is a pivotal hormone when it comes to women and men and it can affect your weight.

[00:14:25] Depending on whether your estrogen levels fluctuate, it can lead to more weight gain in both men and women.

[00:14:31] And so it's important that you see your doctor if you have concerns about your estrogen levels.

[00:14:36] This is just a quick blood test they can do to kind of see where you are.

[00:14:40] But it's important that you incorporate some of these practical tips, prioritizing resistance training, having a balanced diet, making sure you decrease your stress and getting good night's rest to help with managing these changes.

[00:14:56] Well, thank you so much for joining us on another episode of the Back on Track Achieving Healthy Weight Loss Podcast.

[00:15:03] I'm so glad to be able to spend just a little bit of time with you today.

[00:15:08] And if you like this episode, please feel free to share it with others.

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[00:15:17] All right, we'll see you next time.