Missing nutrients slows the metabolism. Essential nutrients play key roles in our body chemistry. Nutrients build muscle and bone, create energy, burn sugar and fat, and keep mood normal. If you aren't getting all your vitamins and minerals, a slow metabolism will also contribute to progressive unwanted weight gain.
Vitamins D and B12 deficiency and weight gain have been found to be directly related, with research suggesting that a complicated relationship exists between the amounts of minerals and vitamins one consumes and how much one weighs.
Vitamin D deficiency is linked to many disease processes. It also plays a role in weight gain. If you're struggling with weight loss, there's a very good chance you're also struggling to store adequate amounts of vitamin D in your body. How do you know if you're deficient in vitamin D?
Vitamin B12 deficiency can indeed lead to weight gain. But the weight gain is not a direct result of the deficiency. Instead, vitamin B12 deficiency causes lethargy or lack of energy, and in turn, inactivity causes weight gain. When you lack the energy to move, you don't burn fat.
This mineral is involved in over 300 enzymatic processes in the body, including every major organ function—especially the heart and brain. But did you know that there is a link between magnesium deficiency and weight gain? Your body depends on magnesium for a lot of processes, like: Maintaining healthy DNA.
To conclude, magnesium is a part of maintaining a healthy life, but taking a magnesium supplement will not lead you to lose any weight long term.
Having inadequate levels of vitamin D may correlate with unintentional weight gain. A study on women over the age of 65 found that participants with a lower vitamin D level experienced more weight gain. A systematic review of 23 different studies found similar associations between vitamin D deficiency and obesity.
You may also find that low iron causes weight gain. There are a couple of reasons for this; firstly, your energy levels are low and so your exercise levels reduce; secondly, iron is essential for thyroid function, and an underactive thyroid will lead to weight gain.
There's no solid proof that vitamin B-12 shots, also called injections, help you lose weight. Vitamin B-12 is a water-soluble B complex vitamin. It's found naturally in many foods, such as meat, fish and dairy products. Vitamin B-12 is added to some foods and is available as a dietary supplement.
Symptoms of vitamin D deficiency may include:
Fatigue. Not sleeping well. Bone pain or achiness. Depression or feelings of sadness.
Do vitamins really cause weight gain? In a word, no. Vitamins cannot directly increase your weight, as they hardly have any calories. On the other hand, a lack of vitamins—vitamin deficiencies—may lead to adverse weight effects.
Obesity involves an accumulation of excess body fat. Early studies have already demonstrated that B vitamins play a crucial role in fat synthesis and there is a synergistic effect of B vitamins on fat synthesis.
In addition, since vitamin D is fat-soluble, people with higher amounts of body fat will 'sequester' vitamin D in fat cells, leading to lower amounts circulating in the blood. Due to this, people with obesity typically need higher amounts of vitamin D to maintain adequate levels and/or to correct a deficiency.
The short answer is yes. This can be for both medical and lifestyle reasons. For example, if you are trying to improve your iron intake through diet and the consumption of iron-rich foods, this is likely to lead to an increase in healthy meals, which can contribute to weight loss.
Supplements to increase metabolism
B-complex vitamins: These help metabolize carbohydrates, fats, and proteins, activating stored energy instead of letting it turn to fat. Niacin, vitamin B-6, and iron: This impressive trio increases your body's production of the amino acid L-carnitine to help burn fat.
An increase in zinc in the body can also help process the carbs and fat that you intake to help with your metabolism. Since zinc has the ability to target these individual issues, weight loss will come more naturally.
For individuals who need to take magnesium supplements, there is some encouraging news. Contrary to popular belief, these supplements do not cause weight gain. In fact, having higher levels of magnesium in the body can facilitate weight loss and aid in maintaining a healthy physique.
Data suggest that a diet deficient in calcium is associated with higher body weight and that augmenting calcium intake may reduce weight and fat gain or enhance loss.