Does Vitamin Deficiency Make Weight Loss Difficult?

You can eat healthy, exercise regularly, get enough sleep, pay attention to your water consumption and manage your stress situation well. However, if you do not have a disease such as insulin resistance, polycystic ovary syndrome, hashimoto thyroid, which will make it difficult for you to lose weight, or even if you do, you receive the necessary medical treatment. Despite all this, can't you lose weight? There may be a simple reason such as vitamin-mineral deficiency underlying your inability to lose weight.

Dietician Specialist Dila İrem Sertcan gave information about the subject.

Vitamin D deficiency

Some studies show that higher body mass index and body fat percentage are associated with lower vitamin D levels. However, vitamin D may play a role in reducing body fat and weight loss by reducing the formation of new fat cells in the body, suppressing fat cell storage, and increasing serotonin levels, which can play a role in controlling appetite. In a double-blind randomized controlled study published in 2012 that included 77 overweight and obese female participants, some of the participants received a vitamin D supplement and some a placebo for 12 weeks. At the end of the study, the group that took the vitamin D supplement had a significantly greater reduction in body fat mass than the group that took the placebo.

iron deficiency

Iron plays a role in producing energy from food and is essential for thyroid function. Low energy levels are seen in iron deficiency and metabolism slows down as a result of insufficient work of the thyroid gland. When these effects are combined, it becomes difficult to lose weight and even weight gain may be encountered.

Magnesium deficiency

Magnesium is a mineral that plays a role in important reactions in the body such as generating energy, balancing blood sugar, regulating blood pressure, and controlling nerve impulses and muscle contraction. In magnesium deficiency, it may be difficult to lose weight as blood sugar and insulin levels will be negatively affected.

B12 deficiency

Although research in humans is limited, some studies show that vitamin B12, which plays an important role in energy production, can affect body fat and metabolism. Having higher vitamin B2019 levels was associated with a lower risk of obesity, according to a study published in 9.075 with 12 adult participants in the United States. Similarly, another study conducted in our country that included 976 people showed that having low vitamin B12 levels is linked to a higher risk of overweight or obesity.