Posted on 11/16/2023 6:38:04 PM PST by MeneMeneTekelUpharsin
Freepers, need your help. Does anyone on here have a family member or friend who has gained massive weight and excessive overeating is NOT causing it. I have great 2nd cousin-in-law who is approaching 500lbs, has always been a bit heavy, but not THAT heavy.
Recently had massive water retention and went from 275-300 lbs to 500lbs, resulting in an ER trip. He and the wife have been to around 20 doctors in the metroplex (Dallas-Fort Worth) who have run a myriad of tests, found that his heart is fine, his cholesterol and blood pressure are normal, no diabetes and no signs of cause for this massive weight gain. Doctors keep telling him he's overeating, but that is not happening, not enough to have that kind of weight gain.
Has anyone had a similar experience and found a cause? I know a lot of very knowledgeable people post here and asking for help. Please, no mockery, this is serious and they really do NOT know what is happening and they haven't found a doctor who knows either. I told my cousin to take him right away to a research hospital like Baylor or Vanderbilt. Thanks in advance.
Once he/she is out of immediate danger you might do some video searches on the carnivore diet. Every video I've see on the subject has been from someone who has realized some amazing changes. In fact, I just finished day 1 of carnivore myself, and it wasn't hard at all (although I should have wrapped bacon around my pork chop).
That’s really fascinating. My friend who takes Statins is overweight, but he eats junk food too.
I’ve never been overweight. But I read a book called Wheat Belly and my LDL went down to normal in a month.
Get him off of all sugars and carbs.
The oils which should be avoided for cooking are oils like soybean, corn, canola, sunflower, and safflower. These oils have unstable fats and will decimate the nutritional properties of your food. Oh, and they’ll give you a big fat health risk in the meantime. There are good oils: These are olive oils, coconut oil and avacado oil.
All processed foods in the middle of the grocery store are usually packed with sugars and the bad oils above.
So he should only shop in the fresh fruits section on the right, the meat section in the back and the frozen foods section on the left. In the frozen foods section, only buy stuff like frozen broccoli, spinach, cauliflower.
The things that doctors test for typically don’t find the problems. There’s a book that I’m reading called “The Unholy Trinity: How Carbs Sugars and oils make us fat sick and addicted and how to escape their grip” By daniel trevor.
I’ve never been overweight, but I read the book: Wheat Belly: Lose the Wheat, Lose the Weight, and Find Your Path Back to Health published in 2014
by William Davis M.D.
It said Wheat not only lards on the pounds but also is a cause of LDL cholesterol. I stopped eating wheat and my LDL went down to normal in a month.
Book has a large section of recipes for every meal of the day. To replace wheat bread, I eat BeFree seed bread available at Natural Grocer and probably other health stores too. Really yummy. Rather expensive but Wonder Bread (Barf Alert) is more expensive now too.
Certainly worth adding to your friend’’s methods of getting off the pounds.
There are many potential causes.
One that is often overlooked are hormone imbalances.
Another that I encountered was a man who would wake up in the middle of the night, raid the refrigerator big time, go back to sleep, and not remember doing it in the morning.
Cancer can also cause weight gain.
A good Dr. will start with a series of tests and search for clues.
Some pituitary adenomas secrete excess hormones, and your cousin may have a type known as a prolactinoma, or an adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH)-secreting adenoma that is particularly associated with obesity and hypertension. In the alternative, your cousin may have an adrenal tumor that causes excess mineralocorticoid secretion leading to water retention and weight gain.
Depending on the type of tumor, a drug regimen may suffice, or surgery may be needed.
Lest I give a false impression, I am not a doctor but had a pituitary tumor some years ago. I had surgery to remove the tumor and remain on medication as a result, with the possibility of a recurrence and another round of surgery. For those reasons, I learned quite a bit about pituitary tumors and related bits of medical science.
More broadly, urge your cousin to keep in mind that most doctors are the equivalent of short order cooks. In a restaurant, you usually do well when you order routine things from the menu. Similarly, most doctors do well with patients whose problems are routine and on the menu of things the doctor understands.
When a patient comes in with something unusual that the doctor does not recognize or understand, they try to explain it as something they do understand. Since patients often exaggerate their problems or lie about their conduct, when someone complains about weight gain, the easiest and most likely answer is that the patient is lying about food and alcohol intake.
In short, your cousin needs to be persistent in seeking medical help even if doctors are skeptical or dismissive of his complaints.
I would see a gastroenterologist to confirm no tumors or issues with the digestive tract.
Other things to consider:
Systemic candidas may be the cause.
Once your gut microbes get out of whack, you can start holding on to toxic weight.
I went on the candida diet, used Aqua Flora High Potency 9 (available online) for 3 months and dropped 30 lbs. Back down to 122 lbs., the same weight I was when I won a beauty pageant and got married. Like your family member, I was not over-eating and usually ate very healthy food (lots of fruits, vegetables, and salads).
I know I put on 30 lbs. this last year. COVID jacked up my digestive system, I developed POTS and was not nearly as active. Now that I’m seeing Dr. McCullough and I’m on his detox program, I’m starting to lose it again.
Good luck and prayers that you get an answer and cure!
You had pericarditis, I am surmising.
If your relative hasn’t seen a nephrologist he should. Based on what you wrote, seeing a nephrologist would be at the top my list.
Some form of nephrosis could be the cause if fluid retention is the issue. Spilling too much protein/albumen in his urine can indicate a potentially serious issue that needs to be treated.
The suggestion to have all of his meds reviewed by a pharmacist is a good one too.
He was morbidly obese before and seems to still be overeating. He needs to stop that.
The massive fluid retention is a big deal. They need to figure out what’s going on. Instead of going to doctors asking why he’s overweight, make the focus the fluid retention.
Best wishes.
Btw, there is no point in going to a bunch of different doctors and having them repeat the same basic tests if he’s not having specialists clear him of potential probLems.
Also, the ER is a crapshoot for solving this. Unless he is having an emergency, ER docs are unlikely to get to the root of the fluid retention issue. That’s not really the job of ER docs. By chance, sometimes one will think of something different and look into that and it will be the right thing. But they are not obligated to give an answer unless it’s immediately life threatening.
Lymphedema can be caused by morbid obesity as well.
“Doctors keep telling him he’s overeating, but that is not happening, not enough to have that kind of weight gain.”
Simple fact of physics, you cannot get something from nothing. Weight gained is weight eaten.
First, I think thyroid. That can surely do it.
However, we found out that I had an auto-immune disease when I put on 20# in a week after eating literally nothing and drinking just water in that time period. I was heavy, and was at the borderline of developing an eating disorder. All of my excess weight was water, and it was due to proteinuria, or protein being spilled in the urine. Without protein, water floats around your body at the will of osmosis and gravity. My kidney function was on the decline due to scarred glomeruli (filters).
However, it was unusual for them to find it in me as a teen, as my disease is normally diagnosed in early childhood. It is unlikely in most adults.
Still, I would also seek renal function - GFR, creatinine, BUN, and even a 24-hr urine panel. That last one is tedious, but accurate.
Are there other factors like drugs or alcohol? And a person can insist that they aren’t overeating and maintain control around family, but when alone, will binge. That is an eating disorder, and I was an expert at hiding my behavior when I was nearing ED territory.
The only way to sort it out either way is to be admitted to a hospital with a controlled diet and fluid intake monitored - I surmise they’d do that anyway considering they don’t know what’s wrong.
Also, can confirm that pharmacists are excellent resources you don’t have to pay to speak to. Granted, most will say, “Dude, see a doctor!” with something complex, but they’re almost doctors when they’re done with school. I’m a pharma tech, and I have been fortunate to have very knowledgeable pharmacists as a patient AND as bosses. I work at the pharmacy I use.
They can, legally, go over meds with the patient and point out any interactions or drugs and supplements with odd side effects.
Semaglutide, sold under the brand names Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus, is a drug used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. It is also used off-label as a very effective weight-loss drug.
It probably does not address whatever the root cause is, but it is effective at treating the obesity.
It is always risky to take a drug, but the risk is probably far lower than the risk from obesity.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semaglutide
I think the herb Berberine may have similar activity for people who do not want to take a drug.
Sometimes it is medication.
True. Most medical fitness programs are low carb 600 calorie liquid diet closely monitored and weight is dropped really fast. Sad situation.
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