Effects of Rapid Weight Loss

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Adnan Sami did it and now Bipasha Basu claims to have done it! What are we talking about? Of course weight loss! But not just any kind of weight loss, we are talking about sudden weight loss. The ‘Ugly duckling to Beautiful Swan’ transformation inducing weight loss!

Weight Loss no doubt increases the persons self confidence and general health levels but also helps them to look and feel better about themselves! But there are certain conditions to it, the main being it shouldn’t be rapid weight loss but a structured weight loss that is achieved by a combination of the proper diet and exercises.

However with the people of 21st century being obsessed with all things fast – fast paced lives, fast food, fast internet connectivity, fast trains, fast cars and so on. Everyone today wants to lose weight fast! Even though rapid weight loss seems like a good option for today’s busy bodies, it brings with it many potentially harmful side effects.

What is Rapid Weight Loss?

Rapid Weight Loss is nothing but sudden weight loss that occurs either due to medical conditions such as a gastro-intestinal disease, a dysfunctional thyroid, diabetes or due to certain medications. Sudden weight loss can also be achieved by lowering one’s calorie intake by going on a diet.

However unlike other forms of weight loss achieved by dieting and exercise, rapid weight loss is often temporary and leads to harmful effects. Following is a list of the effects of rapid weight loss,

Muscle Loss

Rapid weight loss is often accompanied with loss of muscle, as with this kind of sudden weight loss the body slips into ‘ketosis’, a state in which the body begins to burn muscle for energy! Plus with fat not being an effective energy source, the body tends to preserve it as an energy source, using it only as the last option. This leads to more muscle being burned for energy generation purpose by the body, leading to muscle loss.

Loose Skin

Even though our skin is elastic, it needs time to adapt to the changes in our body. But with rapid weight loss, the skin does not get the needed time to adjust to the sudden shrinking of the various body parts, a result of which is sagging skin. Loose skin due to sudden weight loss is mostly visible around the abdomen and in the arms and thighs of the individual.

Hair Loss

Hair Loss is a common occurrence when it comes to rapid weight loss caused by dieting. As most diets aiming for a considerable weight loss advise either a liquid diet or a low calorie diet, both of which lack proteins.

Hair needs protein for its growth and upkeep. In case of a rapid weight loss, where even the metabolism is decreased, protein absorption from the food consumed is low. With lack of protein in the body, the hair becomes brittle and eventually breaks.