Ghrelin

[Guest guest]

Also from this month's issue of " Beyond Change "

One of the tv news programs had a short report on this hormone/peptide

several months ago. This article goes into it in more depth. The main thrust

is that it is produces by cells that line the stomach and duodenum, the

components that are bypassed by the RNY.

Studies have shown that ghrelin injections cause rodents to gain weight and

humans to experience intense feelings of hunger. One British study showed

people injected with the hormone and allowed to eat freely at an open buffet,

increased their food intakes by 30%

Ghrelin production in the body rises prior to meals, signaling the appetite

centers in the brain that the body needs food. It may also cause weight gain

by altering metabolism. In lab animals it reduced the amount of fat used as

fuel and causing it to be stored, resulting in obesity.

A Danish study showed that dieting increases ghrelin levels in direct

proportion to the amount of weigh loss; and a U of W study in Seattle showed

a 25% increase in ghreling among people who'd lost an average of 17% of total

body weight by dieting. No wonder we always gained back everything we lost,

plus an extra 20 or 30 lbs!! (It is assumed that this hormone is the body's

natural protection against starvation, and in leaner times was important for

survival. No longer needed in this respect, due to plentiful food and little

effort to obtain it).

For those who have had RNY bypass, a previously unknown benefit is that the

area where ghrelin is produced is no longer functional, and so ghrelin levels

following bypass are suppressed, which may explain the powerful

weight-reducing actions of the procedure, (lesser appetite, better

maintenance of weight loss). In the same Seattle study, a comparison between

patients who were dieting and bypass patients who'd lost 36% of total body

weight, it was found that the ghrelin levels of bypass patients were 70

PERCENT below those of the dieters.

Ghrelin was initially studied for its ability to stimulate growth hormone

production, which increases muscle and bone mass and has good effects on the

immune system. It would probably be a good idea to study whether the benefits

of suppression on weight loss outweigh the drawbacks of losing bone mass. I'm

now sittin' here wondering if this is one of the reasons why we seem so prone

to getting osteoporosis............

Carol A