~~There is a powerful and influential hormone produced by fat cells called leptin. Science has discovered that leptin is the most powerful metabolic regulator. It tells your brain if you should be hungry, eat, or make more fat. In a perfect world, as you gain weight, you secrete more leptin from your fat cells. This in turn tells your brain you have enough stored fat so it reduces your appetite sending messages to help you burn fat. Basically, leptin is the way that your fat stores speak to your brain to let your brain know how much energy is available and very importantly, what to do with it.
Unfortunately many people have what's called leptin resistance. This means that no matter how much leptin you create from your fat cells, the brain doesn't see it. This leads to a cascade of your brain thinking you are starving, which means you then burn less calories, which causes your appetite to go into overdrive and makes every bit of food you eat get stored onto your belly. Until you address your leptin resistance, your not going to be able to lose weight!
There are an optimal level for leptin which is leptin levels below 12, however, not too low. Researchers have discovered that leptin's too far to the low side has been associated with dementia or Alzheimer's. A leptin above 12 is not considered healthy. Leptin levels can now be measured with a simple blood test. Levels above 12 are linked to weight gain, accelerated aging, increased risk of infertility, diabetes, and heart attack. In addition, high leptin levels are associated with belly fat and numerous cancers. Leptin levels can rise if you don't sleep well, and if you have any kind of perceived stress. If you are having difficulty loosing weight, it is recommended you get your leptin level's checked. From a thyroid perspective, if your leptin is above 12 you will commonly see low T3 and elevated reverse T3. This is not good for those trying to loose weight. The thyroid medication Synthroid is a T4 medication and should be used with some level of caution when high leptin levels are seen. The take away from this thyroid connection is the fact that reverseT3 means T4 is not being effectively converted into the metabolic workhorse hormone, T3.
If you want a solution for too high or low leptin levels it's as easy as a new diet. You become leptin resistant by eating the typical American diet full of sugar, refined grains, and processed foods. The solution is to eat a diet that emphasizes good fats and avoids blood sugar spikes. Something that has a good amount of healthy fats, lean meats and vegetables, and restricts sugars and grains. It is very important to maintain good levels of leptin for many of the reasons stated above, but the biggest and most important reason is keeping your body at the levels it should be at to survive can keep you from disease, cancers, and a number of other illnesses that come along with not taking care of yourself.