Weight loss after menopause

Even more reasons for older women (and probably men too) to not only lose weight; but keep the pounds off. A fascinating study of postmenopausal women finds that if they regain weight after losing weight after menopause, they don’t regain as much lean tissue as they lost, so the end result is more fat, even when they return to their original weight. .

You lose lean tissue and fat when you lose weight according to the study authors. Research has shown that lean tissue makes up about a quarter of total weight loss. The loss of lean muscle and bone is especially problematic for the elderly, and is something physicians should be aware of when counseling their older patients.

For the research, the team investigated the body composition of just under 80 postmenopausal women (ages 50 to 70) who were not active either before or just after finishing a five-month diet. The team weighed the subjects at six and 12 months after weight loss, and looked at the body composition of anyone who regained at least 4.5 pounds.

Overall, the subjects lost about 12% of their body weight on the diet, but at 6-month follow-up, almost two-thirds of them had regained some weight. By the year of follow-up, nearly three-quarters of the subjects had recovered, including 11 who had gained even more than they had lost. At this point, 84% of the weight gainers were above the 4.5-pound benchmark.

The subjects had lost twice as much muscle as fat while following a low-calorie diet, but after they recovered their bodies had more than four times as much fat as muscle. Previous weight gain/regain studies conducted on younger subjects have shown that they generally gain fat and lean muscle at a similar rate to what they lost.

Of course, because the study didn’t have a control group of age-matched women who didn’t lose and then regain weight, no one can be sure that the alteration in lean muscle-to-fat composition isn’t just a natural process for his age. . This is a question that needs to be examined in the future.

On this same topic, an article published in 2009 discussed the changes in body composition of men and women aged 70 to 79 years, comparing those who had lost a minimum of 3% of their body weight and then regained it with those whose weight stayed the same. They found that so-called weight cycling may well contribute to an overall loss of lean muscle mass in older men. Here too, more research was needed.

Experts are still struggling to understand the natural changes in body composition over time. This is especially important today because so many of us are heavy and overweight people survive longer than ever. There are no good guidelines for doctors to follow in terms of treating obese older people. There are experts who believe that it is better to leave them as they are, some are totally opposed to older people losing weight.

While you’ll need to make your own decision in terms of weight loss after menopause, not only is there a very real risk of regaining it, but weight loss in later life can have a detrimental impact on your lean muscle-to-fat composition of your body In favor of weight loss in the elderly is the knowledge that when obese elderly patients lose weight, their osteoarthritis improves, they can move and use stairs more easily and this improvement in quality of life is invaluable. Only you can make the best decision for you and your circumstances.