Is Leptin Resistance Making You Exhausted & Causing Your Weight Gain? Here's What To Do

In functional medicine we know the truth: that weight gain is a symptom, not the cause of health problems. We have to get healthy to lose weight, not lose weight to get healthy. Weight-loss resistance is a sign that something is going on underneath the surface, and that can rarely be solved in the long-term by just another fad diet. We need to ditch dieting and get healthy first, then we'll reach our goal weight and look great, without all the effort. Weight loss will simply be a natural by-product of radiant health.

One of leptin's jobs is to tell your brain to use the body's fat stores for energy. Leptin resistance occurs when leptin is not recognized by the body—specifically the hypothalamic cells of your brain. Your body then thinks it's in starvation mode, which makes it want to store more fat. Welcome to weight-loss resistance. You could look at food and gain weight with leptin resistance. This hormone imbalance is one of the most common hidden drivers of weight gain that I find in patients. So if you live in the gym and eat like a rabbit but can't lose weight, underlying leptin resistance should be ruled out!

So what causes the brain cells to be resistant to leptin? The short answer: inflammation. There are a ton of problems caused by chronic inflammation, and leptin resistance is another to add to the list. Inflammation dulls the brain's leptin receptor sites causing the body to produce more leptin to, in effect, scream at the brain to pick up what the fat cells are throwing down. It's this impaired signaling1 by inflammation, like a couple with bad communication skills, that drives leptin resistance. What are the symptoms of high leptin? As if trouble losing and keeping weight off wasn't enough, high leptin levels are also associated with fatigue and histamine intolerance.

If you answer "yes" to more than one of these, I suggest finding out if you are leptin resistant.

I run a simple blood test to measure leptin levels. Optimal fasting leptin levels should be 4 to 6 ng/dL. The reason why this lab is not commonly run in mainstream medicine? There's no medication for it. If there was—believe me—everyone would be tested for high leptin.

DVR Jimmy Fallon, turn off your smartphone, and get yourself to bed! People with poor sleep habits and subsequent altered circadian rhythms have increased rates of leptin resistance.

For better leptin balance, avoid the late-night snacks. Eating after 8 p.m. has been associated with higher leptin levels and weight gain in various research studies.

Stress is no bueno for your health in so many ways, but high levels of stress and cortisol definitely increase leptin—another reason to bring some mindfulness and self-care into your life. You can thank me later.

A healthy intake of omega fats from wild-caught fish is one of the best ways to balance out leptin levels. Plant-based omega fats such as flax oil can also be fine to bring into your routine, but the bioavailability can be low for people struggling with leptin resistance.

Since inflammation is one of the main factors in leptin resistance, bring anti-inflammatory foods into your routine. Try out my one-day diet to start balancing out inflammation levels.