PCOS To Heredity, 5 Reasons Why Women Might Have Excess Facial Hair

 Everyone has facial hair. Some might have fine pale hair, while some have dark thick strands on their beard line, chin, upper lips, neck, and forehead.

While everyone has fine hair, it is the coarse ones that can say a lot about our bodies. Excessive and coarse facial hair in women is a condition called hirsutism. In most cases, it is the excess production of male hormones (androgens), most commonly testosterone, that leads to hair growth. There could be other underlying causes as well.

Here are five reasons why a woman’s body can be producing more male hormones.

Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS)

One of the biggest causes of hirsutism is polycystic ovarian syndrome. According to experts, it accounts for 85% of the cases. The condition causes benign cysts to develop in ovaries that make hormones go haywire.

It also leads to infrequent menstrual cycles and problems in conceiving naturally. Other symptoms of PCOS include acne, weight gain, skin tags, hair thinning and fertility issues.

Cushing’s Syndrome

It is a hormonal disorder that expert defines as the production of high levels of cortisol, a stress hormone. It comes from the adrenal glands and rests on the kidneys. It is responsible for regulating blood sugar, maintaining blood pressure, converting food into energy and soothing inflammation.

However, too much production of cortisol creates hormonal imbalances. Other common symptoms of the condition include weight gain, acne, fatigue, depression, hair thinning, high blood pressure, sleep issues and high blood sugar levels.

Medications

Dr. says that certain kinds of medications can also cause hirsutism. For example, if a woman is undergoing treatment for endometriosis (a tissue that is supposed to grow inside the uterus, starts to grow outside) can result in high levels of dehydroepiandrosterone and testosterone.

In another case, if the woman’s partner is on medication that contains androgens, it can affect her as well. This could get transferred from skin-to-skin contact and cause a rise in male hormones leading to excessive growth of hair on a woman’s body.

Adrenal Gland Disorders

Hirsutism can also be the result of adrenal gland disorders like tumours and cancer. An adrenal tumour can lead to excess production of hormones which can affect blood pressure and sugar levels. It can also cause headache, fatigue, weight loss, irregular periods and weight gain.

Other Factors

Family history or ancestry are among the major reasons behind a woman having coarse facial hair. If  PCOS runs in the family, it is likely the new generation would also suffer from it.

If we track the ancestral line, women living in the Mediterranean, South Asian, and Middle Eastern countries are more likely to have facial hair. Obesity is also another factor that can increase the production of androgens and lead to hirsutism.

If you experience other physiological symptoms along with facial hair, you must consult a doctor to ensure there is no underlying health condition behind it.

 

 

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.   

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Secondary hypertension: Know what it is and who are at risk

All you need to know about secondary hypertension

Even though high blood pressure or hypertension is a prevalent health complication, about 70 per cent of the cases go undiagnosed in India. One of the reasons is the lack of awareness about the causes and risk factors, particularly among the rural population which further trickles down to low treatment rates, predisposing people to life-threatening conditions. Many do not even know that there are two types of hypertension - primary and secondary. Primary hypertension is the most common one caused due to poor lifestyle habits or family history, while secondary hypertension is usually a result of other medical conditions. Accounting for about 10 per cent of all cases of high blood pressure, it often goes undiagnosed.

​Understanding secondary hypertension

High blood pressure is characterised by having a higher amount of pressure in your blood vessels than normal. It is evaluated by a systolic and diastolic number that appears on the blood pressure monitoring machine.

Secondary hypertension is caused as the result of a known disease or condition that the patient has been suffering for a long time. This type of hypertension differs from primary hypertension in many ways. Proper treatment for secondary hypertension can also help to control the underlying health condition and reduce the risk of health-related complications. 

​Symptoms of secondary hypertension

Just like primary hypertension, secondary hypertension has subtle signs. Even if it reaches a dangerous level, it is difficult to detect if one is not careful about it. If you have been diagnosed with high blood pressure, these common signs indicate that you probably have secondary hypertension:

A condition that is unmanageable with blood pressure medication

Very high blood pressure

Sudden-onset high blood pressure at a younger age

No family history of high blood pressure

No obesity

Causes of secondary hypertension

Several chronic conditions can make your blood pressure level shoot up. Managing high blood pressure can also help to reduce the symptoms of other underlying health conditions. Some of the reasons one may develop secondary hypertension are:

Diabetes: Unmanaged diabetes can put excessive pressure on the kidneys to flush out sugar from the blood. This condition over time can spike the blood pressure level.

Polycystic kidney disease: Cysts in your kidneys can obstruct the normal functioning of the kidneys, leading to a spike in blood pressure level.

Renovascular hypertension: This type of high blood pressure is caused when the arteries leading to your kidneys narrow down.

Cushing syndrome: High cortisol levels for a long time can lead to Cushing syndrome and its medication may cause secondary hypertension.

Hormonal disorder: Thyroid disorder or Aldosteronism can also impact your kidneys leading to a rise in the blood pressure level.

Sleep apnea: Severe snoring during sleep that causes obstruction in getting a sufficient amount of oxygen can damage the lining of the blood vessel, leading to high blood pressure.

Apart from these other conditions like obesity, pregnancy and excessive intake of some over-the-counter drugs can also lead to secondary hypertension. 

Treatment

To treat hypertension first the underlying condition that increases the blood pressure level needs to be treated. Once the underlying condition is treated, the blood pressure will go back to normal. Depending on your condition, the doctor will prescribe you medication, lifestyle changes and other treatment options to control your blood pressure level.  

 

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.   

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How metabolism works and why you can't speed it up to lose weight

The part of your metabolism that burns calories throughout the day is called your basal metabolic rate (BMR). 

There's little you can do to speed up your BMR to lose weight.

In order to lose weight, you must consume fewer calories than you burn each day through a combination of diet, exercise, and BMR processes that are mostly out of your control.

As you age, your metabolism will slow down but studies show that staying active can help.

Metabolism is the set of chemical reactions that break down the food we eat into energy and muscle.

Though many people think that they will lose weight if they speed up their metabolism, this isn't necessarily true. Here's what you need to know about the complicated relationship between metabolism and weight-loss.

Popular myths about metabolism and weight loss
When people refer to metabolism being "fast" or "slow" what they are really referring to is a measure of Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR). BMR determines the number of passive calories that you burn — these are the calories that your body uses up while at rest.

A popular misconception is that adding muscle will help you metabolize calories faster — and while this is partially true, muscles at rest actually burn very few calories. Most of the metabolizing energy you expend is through your brain, heart, kidneys, and other organs that are constantly at work keeping you alive and healthy.

There is evidence that cardiovascular exercise can help boost your metabolism for a short period after you work out, but this effect only lasts for an hour or so and is not usually enough to cause significant weight loss. 

There's also the myth that eating certain foods will speed up your metabolism. But the reality is that even if certain foods can affect your BMR it's not nearly enough to make a noticeable difference in your weight. In order to lose weight, you must create a deficit between the calories you consume through food and the calories you burn through a combination of diet, physical activity, and passive metabolic processes that are largely out of your control. 

Genetics play a key role in your BMR

The sad truth is that it's hard to change your BMR in any significant way. The fact that some people naturally have a faster BMR than others is largely due to genetics.

A review, published in 2011 in Molecular Genetics and Metabolism, that examined 9 twin studies and 19 family studies found that metabolic syndrome — and some of the symptoms associated with it including obesity, high cholesterol, and insulin resistance — are common among families, suggesting a significant heritability factor.

The exception to this rule comes up only for rare illnesses like Cushing's syndrome or hypothyroidism, which both slow metabolism.

Aging and your BMR
As you age, your metabolism becomes less efficient, or what we think of as "slowing down," says Heather Seid, a registered dietician and Bionutrition Program Manager at Columbia University.
There are many reasons your metabolism slows down, including losing muscle mass and changes in your cells. But the main reason for metabolism change is that people become less active as they get older.

Unfortunately, you can't completely stop your metabolism from slowing down as you age but exercise may give you a boost. Studies show that keeping active as you grow older can help curb a metabolism slowdown.

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.     

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https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com. feel free to view for easy, simple and healthy recipes    
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