Fighting the Battle of the Bulge with homeopathy

“Let me have men about me that are fat;
Sleek-headed men and such as sleep o’ nights:
Yond Cassius has a lean and hungry look;
He thinks too much: such men are dangerous.”
This is what Caesar tells Antonius in Act I scene ii of the play Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare.
If you are a person who has been working 24 x 7 to keep your weight in check, thanks to a family disposition to obesity, these words are what you so want to hear :).
Obesity is a type of malnutrition. Yes, we should call it that. The stereotype picture of malnutrition is a picture of an emaciated child in Ethiopia or Sudan. However, obesity is also a type of malnutrition- an over nutrition which leads to accumulation of fat in the body.
Obesity is also a cause of poor self-esteem and it is now politically incorrect to call a person fat or obese. Walmart created quite a stir recently when it listed “fat girls costumes” on its online store. It had to quickly remove the offensive page and apologize profusely on social media sites.

Obese people have also been the “butt” of jokes- pun intended. So it is remarkable that Gabriel Iglesias, the stand up comedian has a humorous take on his weight in a show titled- “I’m not fat …. I’m fluffy”.

Maybe as a backlash (?), songs about loving your size are having a moment right now (Time, October 13, 2014 issue) and Meghan Trainor, the 20 year old singer writer recently released her debut EP, Title, featuring her smash-hit-ode to plus-size figures, “All About That Bass”-

“I see the magazines working that Photoshop
We know that shit ain’t real
Come on now, make it stop
If you got beauty beauty just raise ’em up
‘Cause every inch of you is perfect
From the bottom to the top
Yeah, my momma she told me don’t worry about your size”
Jokes (and politically incorrect terms) apart, and without making a song and dance about it, we need to get the facts right about obesity.
More than 35% of U.S. adults are obese. Childhood obesity prevalence also remains high at about 17 percent.
Obesity predisposes one to many disease conditions that include heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and certain types of cancer, some of the leading causes of preventable death. I am tempted to call Obesity the mother of all life-style related diseases.
Causes of obesity and their homeopathic remedies:
Physical inactivity: causes an imbalance in the energy taken in and the energy spent. This cannot be overcome by medicines but by proper counselling and health advice by the homeopath and other health professionals.
Genetic (familial) tendency: Your chances of being overweight are greater if one or both of your parents are overweight or obese. If the family adopts healthy food and physical activity habits, the child’s chance of being overweight or obese is reduced.
Endocrinal disorders: like hypothyroidism, Cushing’s syndrome and PCOS (http://drvaishnav.com/ovariandisease.aspx) are associated with obesity. Homeopathic constitutional remedies like Calcarea carbonica, Graphites, Phytolacca, Thuja, etc. will treat the underlying hormonal problem and hence in turn will reduce the obesity.
Stress: Emotional factors like anxiety and depression can lead to over-eating and cause weight gain over a period of time. This is when homeopathic remedies like Argentum nitricum, Lycopodium, Natrum mur, etc. can be considered.
Medicines: for the treatment of depression, convulsions and immune disorders (corticosteroids) can slow down the body’s metabolic activity or cause water retention and hence weight gain. A homeopath treats the underlying disease and helps bring the person back to his normal state of health. The primary physician can then slowly taper off these medicines and the weight gain gets reversed.
Sleep: helps maintain a healthy balance of the hormones that make you feel hungry (ghrelin) or full (leptin). When you don’t get enough sleep, your level of ghrelin goes up and your level of leptin goes down. This makes you feel hungrier than when you’re well-rested. A number of homeopathic remedies are useful for the bad effects of lack of sleep- Nux vomica, Cocculus, Causticum, Cuprum met, etc. For people who suffer from insomnia, homeopathic remedies like Coffea, Ignatia, Kali phosphoricum, Pulsatilla, Nux vomica, Sulphur, etc are some remedies that may be useful.
Obesity is a life-style disorder with a multi-factorial etiology. To treat this condition requires not just medicines, but a controlled and balanced diet and regular exercise. Only one of these three will not work. Work with your homeopath who can give you advice on life-style changes along with the homeopathic remedies so that YOU can control your weight. Remember, medicines alone can never help.

For homeopathic consultation for your symptoms you may visit Homeopathic Healing or send an e-mail to office@drvaishnav.com to meet the Homeopathic Specialists.

Disclaimer: A detailed history followed by constitutional treatment by a good and qualified homeopathic practitioner is necessary to treat the complaints that appear due to any disease. The homeopathic remedies mentioned in this post are for informational purposes only. The information contained on this site is general in nature and is not meant to substitute for the advice provided by your own physician or other health care professional. None of the statements on this site are an endorsement of any particular product, or a recommendation as to how to treat any particular disease or health-related condition. It is not advisable to resort to self-medication for any disease.

“Obese Woman Sitting On A Red Chair” by Sailom Image courtesy of Sailom at FreeDigitalPhotos.net