You still eat large amounts of food and exercise very little, or not at all, but the weight loss still occurs. If this is experienced by you, weight gain then here are some of the causes of weight loss you are experiencing:
1. Hyperthyroidism
Hyperthyroidism or overactive thyroid is a condition when your thyroid gland produces too much thyroid hormone which plays a role in metabolism. Excess thyroid hormone triggers accelerated calorie burning which can lead to unplanned weight loss.
Symptoms that can appear besides sudden weight loss are feeling tired, tremors in the hands, light menstruation in women, fast and irregular heartbeat, overheating easily, anxiety, and sleep disturbances.
2. Depression
Who says depression only has a psychological impact. The fact is depression can trigger weight loss. Depression affects the part of the brain that controls appetite and can potentially decrease appetite leading to weight loss.
However, in some cases, depression can actually increase appetite and weight. Some of the symptoms of depression are low energy levels, persistent feelings of sadness, poor concentration. Most people also lose interest in things they enjoy, get irritated easily, sleep too much or too little, and have thoughts of death or suicide.
3. Decreased muscle mass
Loss or loss of muscle mass can lead to unplanned weight loss. Decreased muscle mass can be due to muscles that have not been used for a long time, for example due to coma, rarely exercising, and so on.
In certain cases, decreased muscle mass can be due to injury or certain medical conditions, such as osteoporosis, multiple sclerosis, and so on. The main characteristic of decreased muscle mass is muscle weakness and muscle size that looks smaller than other muscles.
4. Rheumatoid arthritis
One of the most common autoimmune diseases is rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Rheumatoid arthritis attacks and causes inflammation in the joints. This inflammation increases metabolism, which triggers weight loss.
The main symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis are pain and swelling in the joints. You can also experience joint stiffness if you don’t move for more than an hour.
5. HIV-AIDS
HIV attacks CD4 cells which function to fight infection and can lead to AIDS which makes significant weight loss. Symptoms of HIV that usually appear are muscle aches, chills, fever, rashes, swollen lymph glands, and sweats at night.
6. Cancer
One of the early symptoms of cancer is unexplained weight loss. However, not all cancers cause symptoms such as weight loss.
Some of the other early symptoms of cancer are fatigue, pain, skin changes, and fever. You need further tests to find out for sure whether the symptoms are due to cancer or due to other medical conditions.
Also read: These High Calorie Foods Can Help You Gain Weight
7. Type 1 diabetes
Similar to rheumatoid arthritis, type 1 diabetes is also an autoimmune disease that attacks insulin-producing cells in the pancreas. Without insulin, the body ultimately cannot use sugar as energy and excretes sugar through the urine.
Type 1 diabetes not only causes sudden weight loss, but also leads to excessive hunger and thirst, fatigue, increased frequency of urination, blurred vision, and dehydration.
8. Tuberculosis
It’s nothing new if tuberculosis caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection can cause weight loss and appetite. This disease is highly contagious and requires antibiotics to cure it.
Other symptoms that can be experienced are a cough that has lasted more than three weeks, fatigue, chills, fever, chest pain, coughing up blood or phlegm.
9. Addison’s disease
Addison’s disease is a rare autoimmune disease that attacks the adrenal glands and causes a decrease in the hormone cortisol which leads to decreased appetite and weight loss.
Another symptom of Addison’s disease is
